Hisham al-Masry, chief information officer of the Orient Group, speaks during an interview in Alexandria, Egypt, on Oct. 17, 2018. The upcoming first China International Import Expo (CIIE) is a very important opportunity to discover, understand and enter the Chinese market, al-Masry said. (Xinhua/Wu Huiwo)

by Marwa Yahya, Abdel-Maguid Kamal

ALEXANDRIA, Egypt, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The upcoming first China International Import Expo (CIIE) is a very important opportunity to discover, understand and enter the Chinese market, said an Egyptian businessman.

"The expo will be an important opportunity to enter the Chinese markets, meet with the Chinese buyers and identify the real needs of the clients," Hisham al-Masry, chief information officer of the Orient Group which exports dates, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

With a capital of 200 million Egyptian pounds (11 million U.S. dollars), the Orient Group exported in 2017 nearly 14,500 tons of dates to foreign markets including South Asian countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

The company now looks forward to entering the Chinese market.

Al-Masry said the CIIE, which will be held on Nov.5-10 in China's financial hub Shanghai, provides a new promising platform for showcasing his agricultural products.

Egypt has great potentials in the date sector as its products taste more delicious with cheaper prices, while China is a vast market for dates, he added.

According to official statistics, Egypt is the world's largest date producer with an annual yield of more than 1.7 million tons.

Orient Group now runs three factories for sorting, packing and exporting dates. It is planning to establish new lines for producing date paste.

"If we succeed in concluding good deals in the coming expo, it will be reflected positively on our company's reputation and sales," al-Masry said.

Official data show more than 2,800 enterprises from more than 130 countries and regions have confirmed their participation in the first CIIE.

Al-Masry expected success of the expo, saying he is very optimistic about accessing the Chinese market.

"China always advocates win-win interests for everyone," he noted, expecting his company to attract the Chinese consumers with the good taste of its dates.

The businessman also hailed the bilateral political ties between China and Egypt, saying they have positively been mirrored on the growing economic and trade relations.

"China has achieved an economic miracle as well as a leap in the agricultural field despite its large population, a model that our country could follow," al-Masry concluded.