Space sold at Asian trade fairs in 2013 posts fastest growth since 2008

News this week: UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, has released the tenth edition of its annual Report on the Trade Fair Industry in Asia. Net space sold at Asian trade fairs jumped by 6.6% in 2013 to more than 17.3 million net m². The current research shows that 17.38 million m² of space was sold by exhibition organisers to their clients in Asia in 2013 – up from 16.31 m² the year before. Of that total, more than 55% was sold in China – or in terms of net space sold 9.72 million m². That is almost five times the space sold in Asia’s second largest trade fair market, Japan (1.97 million m²).

For the fourth year in a row growth was particularly strong in Southeast Asia. Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore all outperformed the regional average of 6.6%, but the region’s fastest growing market in 2013 was Taiwan where net space sold increased by nearly 14%. Of the larger markets, China posted the fastest growth – 8.0% in 2013. China has not grown that rapidly since 2008. The other large markets grew more modestly last year. India’s market expanded by 5.4%, Hong Kong and Korea by 3.4% and Japan by just 2.3%.

Asia’s venue capacity will exceed 7 million m² by the end of 2014 and the number of venues operating in Asia this year will hit 200 – up from the 100 venues that were in operation in 2004 when the first edition of this report was published. In 2014, China will be home to 106 venues and 4.85 million m² of gross indoor capacity. That represents almost 70% of total capacity available in the region.

This research was once again undertaken for UFI by Business Strategies Group (BSG). UFI members are entitled to receive a four page executive summary of the research and to purchase the full report at a substantial discount. For more information on this study, please contact UFI in Asia at: asia@ufi.org

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