(Yicai) Oct. 16 -- Various robots debuted at this year's second session of the bi-annual China Import and Export Fair, better known as the Canton Fair, with the competitiveness of Chinese products attracting many international buyers, including from the United States, despite short-term tariff concerns.

The commercial cleaning robots of Zhihui Technology, a Chinese manufacturer of professional robotic systems, secured potential orders exceeding CNY1 million (USD140,400) on the first day of the Canton Fair, Chief Marketing Officer Guo Wei told Yicai. The Shenzhen-based firm expects its exports to triple this year from the previous year, Guo added.

The 138th Canton Fair opened yesterday and runs through Nov. 4 in Guangzhou. The event has drawn over 240,000 buyers from 218 countries and regions, with more than 32,000 firms displaying their latest products, according to the organizer.

Zhihui Tech signed around 2,000 export orders in the six months ended June 30, Guo noted, adding that the growth momentum has continued in the second half of this year.

"Our main export markets include Europe, North America, East Asia, and Southeast Asia," Guo said. Exports to the US have not been significantly affected by tariffs, partly because the selling price of Chinese cleaning robots at US distributors is several times higher than our export price, allowing them to absorb the impact of rising tariffs, Guo added.

Abdelhamid Yousef, a buyer from Miami, told Yicai that he was attending the Canton Fair for the first time and intends to buy robots capable of delivering food and parcels indoors. The US government's restrictive immigration policies have affected local labor supply in the logistics sector, driving market demand for robots, he noted.

China's robotics industry leads the world with high-quality products, so doing business with Chinese companies is still appealing in spite of uncertainties with US tariff policies, Yousef stressed.

"Overseas demand for delivery and cleaning robots is strong due to high local labor costs," Bi Cheng, public relations manager at the brand department of indoor catering robots provider Pudu Technology, said to Yicai. The Canton Fair has attracted many overseas buyers with actual needs for such products, Bi noted.

"Our robots and robot dogs are mainly exported to European and American markets, with applied scenarios including factory handling, on-site inspection, and exhibition hall introduction," Wu Jian, overseas sales manager of Magic Atom, told Yicai. The firm's export revenue accounts for nearly half of its total income, Wu added.

China has many robotics research and development talents who can achieve low-cost production and product iteration via interdisciplinary tech integration, according to Guo. It also has interdisciplinary talents covering software, hardware, algorithms, and communication that can provide timely after-sales services for international customers, Guo said.

In addition, China's supply chain advantage is quite obvious, Guo noted, adding that 95 percent of the hundreds of components used in commercial cleaning robots can be sourced in the Pearl River Delta region, with suppliers able to respond to various needs of companies within one hour.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev