Robert Herzner, a representative from the German Federal Foreign Trade and Investment Agency in China, congratulates Huzhou on the opening of the Huzhou Commodity Fair via a video message. [Photo/WeChat account: huzhoufabu]

A number of officials from Huzhou's sister cities, including Shimada in Japan and Karlovac in Croati,a as well as several foreign agency representatives in China, congratulated Huzhou through video messages on the opening of the Huzhou Commodity Fair in Deqing county on June 16.

Someya Kinuyo, mayor of Shimada, said that she hopes the fair a success. She said that Shimada was Huzhou's first overseas sister city, and the two have maintained friendly cooperation for 33 years.

Shimada is a well-known tea production area in Japan, and has a high rate of afforestation, she said. She also expressed hope that more people from Huzhou would visit Shimada in the future to experience its history and culture. 

Damir Mandic, mayor of Karlovac, said that Huzhou, located in the center of the Yangtze River Delta region, is an excellent destination for investment and entrepreneurship due to its beautiful environment, vibrant economy, and friendly people.

He added that the Huzhou Commodity Fair will prove to be a great online and offline trading platform and said he hopes to strengthen cooperation between the two cities. 

Robert Herzner, a representative from the German Federal Foreign Trade and Investment Agency in China, also congratulated Huzhou on the opening of the fair. 

Herzner was highly impressed by the city during a business trip he took there several week ago. He said that Huzhou is a vibrant and orderly city and that the Chinese and German companies he visited while there were satisfied with the city.

In recent years, Huzhou has been opening up more to the outside world. It has established sister-city relations with 38 cities in 18 countries worldwide.