KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 1 (Sin Chew Daily) — The first Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) virtual exhibition called #MyAPEC2020 is targeting RM500 million in sales, says deputy minister of international trade and industry Datuk Lim Ban Hong.

Affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the #MyAPEC2020 exhibition will be held online in conjunction with Malaysia's hosting of APEC 2020.

"I believe #MyAPEC2020 will be a catalyst to encourage more organizers and businesses to go online. This will inject new energy into external trade, shaping a new style to purchase.

"More importantly, it will help revive the economy," said Lim, who launched the virtual exhibition.

The virtual exhibition was launched by Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) to create a smart platform switching conventional exhibitions to the online platform with top-notched technology for Malaysian companies to promote their products to the world in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Held from Sep 1 to Dec 31, the virtual exhibition will showcase products and services by more than 300 exhibitors from Malaysia and 21 APEC economies. The products are from eight different sectors, namely technology, food, green tech & energy, healthcare, professional & business services, transport & logistics, lifestyle and building materials.

During the exhibition, participants and purchasers will have access to information of products and merchandisers from the digital platform. Parties are able to have online discussions to conduct live pitching sessions, real-time interactive communication, meetings and others.

Also present at the launch were Matrade chairman Tan Sri Halim Mohammad, Matrade chief executive officer Datuk Wan Latiff Wan Musa, ministry of international trade and industry deputy secretary-general Hairil Yahri Yaacob and Fusionex International Group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Ivan Teh.