Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering Co signs four procurement deals worth more than $20 million at the third China International Import Expo in Shanghai on Nov 6. [Photo/ntfabu.com]

The Nantong delegation to the third China International Import Expo, which is being held in Shanghai from Nov 5 to 10, had signed 35 deals worth a total of $118 million as of Nov 6, according to statistics from the Nantong bureau of commerce.

Of that total, 24 deals, valued at $62.3 million, were signed by private enterprises. This accounts for 53 percent of the total turnover and is 8 percentage points higher than in the same period last year.

Zhongtian Technology Group, a leading tech company in Nantong, signed a $10 million cooperation agreement with the German technology giant Siemens.

Jiangsu Youyang Pharmaceuticals Co and Jiangsu Alphay International Trade Co each signed deals worth more than $5 million with South Korean and Japanese enterprises to cooperate in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

In addition to the high-tech sector, Nantong private enterprises also eyed the market potential of agricultural products, such as tea from Panama, with a deal worth $2 million yuan.

Officials said that over the 40 years of reform and opening-up, the private sector has become the main force behind Nantong's economic development.

The added value of the private economy currently accounts for 68 percent of the city's total, while generating 75 percent of the city's tax revenue.

Among the 2,310 Nantong enterprises attending the third CIIE, about 70 percent are from the private sector.

The CIIE, the world's first import-themed national-level expo, has offered a great platform for Nantong private businesses to expand foreign trade, attract foreign investment and promote international cooperation.