The China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) is now expanding partnerships with influential companies and institutions in preparations for the annual fair, the organizing committee announced at a market development event it hosted on Wednesday.

　　This year, CIFTIS will expand its market development by increasing the number and types of sponsors, introducing diverse cultural and creative derivative products and welcoming more market players in preparing and organizing the event, said Wei Mingqian, chairman of Beijing Capital Group Exhibitions &Events, one of CIFTIS' organizers.

　　Through open, integrated, and pragmatic cooperation, CIFTIS is committed to providing a wide range of market opportunities with its partners and promoting development and prosperity of trade in services globally, Wei said.

　　Over 20 cultural and creative products based on FuYan, the CIFTIS mascot, were also released at the Wednesday event. These include commemorative badges, flushed toys, T-shirts, canvas bags, and bookmarks.

　　According to the organizers, the image of FuYan draws its inspiration from Beijing swifts, a kind of migrant birds that fly over 37 countries with a round trip of nearly 30,000 kilometers every year. The brave and unrelenting bird symbolizes the CIFTIS's goal of promoting international communication and the tenacious spirit of moving forward, the organizers said.

　　CIFTIS is the world's largest comprehensive exhibition in the field of global trade in services, and one of China's three major exhibition platforms for the country's opening-up. The other two are the China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair) and the China International Import Expo.