XIAMEN: The 2005 China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) kicked off in this port city yesterday, attracting 8,500 overseas delegates from 102 countries and regions.

　　At the four-day event, 16,223 projects from the mainland will seek foreign capital, and 950 from 66 other nations and regions will look for Chinese investors.

　　"China's economy is maintaining a steady and rapid growth with the country's opening-up policy. Attracting foreign investment is a win-win policy. China's economy benefits from it, while overseas investors have made good profits," said Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai at the opening ceremony.

　　He said the country will further fine-tune the opening-up policy to ensure scientific and sustainable development.

　　International seminars to be held during the fair include the ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) Trade and Investment Exposition, the High-Profile Seminar on APEC Intellectual Property Protection and the first Cross-Straits Tourism Expo.

　　The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) also released its World Trade and Development Report yesterday at the expo.

　　Besides, countries and regions such as Sweden, Poland, Belgium, Denmark, Canada, Italy, Hong Kong and Macao held "Hall Day" activities seeking investment.

　　China added the word "international" to this year's fair, aiming to develop CIFIT into an information exchange platform for investors and enterprises throughout the world, said Liu Yajun, director of the Executive Bureau of Investment Promotion of the Ministry of Commerce.

　　Dan Carp, chairman of Eastman Kodak, said at the International Forum of CIFIT that adding the word "international" to the event signals an important shift in China's approach to trade and investment.

　　"In the early days of economic reforms in China, the focus was mainly on attracting direct foreign investment and increasing exports. Now the objective is broader - to promote bilateral investment and strike a balance between imports and exports," Carp said.

　　He said CIFIT's reputation has grown over the years and is now universally recognized.

　　There are more than 130 British business delegates attending this session of CIFIT, the biggest foreign team at the fair.

　　Christopher Hum, UK ambassador to China, said his country was the first to hold Hall Day activities at CIFIT, demonstrating the importance it attaches to the event.