Foreign companies, mostly from countries and regions participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, are seeking opportunities at the 125th China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair.

As the countries' largest trade fair, which opened in Guangzhou City, capital of southern China's Guangdong Province, on April 15, the fair has drawn 650 foreign enterprises from 38 countries and regions looking for opportunities in the Chinese market.

Karavan, a Russian company specializing in freight service between China and Russia, considers its first presence at the fair as a milestone in its development.

"The volume of business is growing constantly thanks to the development of the trade between China and Russia," said Zhao Yong, general manager of Guangzhou branch of the company.

Founded in 2004, the company has seen the number of its trucks increasing by nine times to cater to the growing business.

The volume of trade between China and Russia surpassed 100 billion U.S. dollars in 2018. The growth rate of bilateral trade last year was the fastest among the top 10 trading partners of China.

LiOA, a lamp manufacturer from Vietnam founded in 1988, hopes to find distributors at the fair to expand into the Chinese market.

"We have brought our latest products for outdoor use to the fair, which I believe could be popular in the Chinese market," said Vu Thanh Nga, manager of the export department of the company.

"Since China is a very big market, with the biggest population in the world, we hope that we have the chance to export (products) to China, and develop the (Chinese) market together with local distributors," she added.

Nine companies from Egypt attended the import exhibition of the first phase of the Canton Fair.

"We are here not only to target the Chinese market but also to target all the international markets, as the fair is the biggest gathering of the international buyers from all over the world," said Taymour Essam, project manager of the Export Development Authority of Egypt.

The Canton Fair will last until May 5, and is widely seen as a barometer of China's foreign trade.