Fighting for a place in the world's hottest vehicle market, manufacturers and their Chinese partners are gathering in Shanghai for the country's biggest car show.
The 10th Shanghai Auto Show, to be held in a giant international exhibition centre in Pudong has attracted more than 700 companies who will display dozens of new models. More than 400,000 visitors are expected at the show, which starts tomorrow and runs until next Sunday.
The event is proceeding despite the Sars outbreak, which has seen dozens of events in the city involving foreigners cancelled amid fears for people's health.
'All the companies will come,' said a spokeswoman for the show. 'There is no impact from Sars and the preparations are in full swing. We are disinfecting the entire exhibition area.'
But industry sources say some executives based outside Shanghai have decided not to travel to the city and have instructed local representatives to run their stalls and media events on their behalf.
One casualty of Sars was a 'China Congress' organised by US magazine Automotive News that was due to be held in the city from tomorrow to Wednesday. The seminar was to have featured speeches from top officials of Honda, Volkswagen, Delphi, General Motors and Shanghai Automotive Industry. It was cancelled because many of the speakers refused to come.
Exhibitors are not only competing for the attention of the public, but also of the media, as the event is the best opportunity of the year to showcase new models. The mainland's car culture has developed to the point where dozens of specialist car magazines and television programmes are dedicated to the industry.
