BEIJING, Oct.8 -- An international musical instrument show will open at the Shanghai New International Expo Center on October 9.

　　The four-day Music China 2008 show, organized by China Musical Instrument Association (CMIA), Intex Shanghai Co Ltd and Messe Frankfurt Hong Kong, is a key part of the Shanghai International Arts Festival.

　　Organizers said the show has become the biggest of the kind in Asia after six years of strenuous effort.

　　"China's robust economy has been a strong stimulus to the development of its musical instrument industry," said Yan Minjie, spokeswoman for INTEX Shanghai.

　　Its yearly exports are increasing stably, turning China into the world's largest musical instrument market, said a CMIA official.

　　Statistics from the General Administration of Customs show that imports and exports of China's musical instruments amounted to $706 million in the first half of this year, up 25.84 per cent over the same period of last year. Exports reached $617 million with many products sold to the United States, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, South Korea, Britain, Belgium, Indonesia, Brazil and the Netherlands.

　　"The United States is still the biggest purchaser of China's musical instruments," said the official.

　　He said that its imports of musical instruments reached $191 million in the first six months of this year, an increase of 55 per cent over the same period of last year.

　　But due to the financial crisis, the United States is decreasing its imports of China's musical instruments, especially pianos, he said.

　　"The show will display new products and new technologies to push forward the development of China's musical instrument industry"; Organizers said.

　　Present at the show will be 1,109 enterprises from 22 countries and regions, including the United States, Britain, Austria and France.

　　Austria, Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Spain have organized delegations to take part in the show that has an exhibition area of 65,000 square meters.

　　Meanwhile, Prolight+Sound 2008, an international lighting and acoustics show, will be held at the expo center with more than 300 exhibitors attending.

　　(Source: China Daily)