The 17th China Dalian International Maritime Exhibition closed at the Dalian World Expo Plaza on October 30, 2026.
Over its three-day duration, the exhibition attracted 62,000 visitors, an increase of 21 per cent compared with the previous edition. Shiptec China, the event's organisers, said more than 3,000 deals and cooperation intentions were generated, representing a 46 per cent year-on-year growth.
More than 300 representatives from maritime-related institutions, industry associations, exhibitors and purchasers from over 20 countries and regions including China, Russia, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Greece, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Arab Emirates, and Singapore, were present at the opening ceremony.
The organisers said the number of overseas exhibitors and the count of represented countries and regions hit record highs, with participants coming from more than 20 destinations.
There were also professional purchasing delegations from countries such as Germany, the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Russia, and these groups conducted cooperation discussions at target exhibitor booths, "with encouraging preliminary cooperation-intent rates that rewarded international buyers for their attendance," the organisers said.
The exhibition also offered an open platform for multi-party collaboration and integration in areas such as alternative energy-powered vessels and digital offshore equipment, which are topics of interest in light of what the organisers said is, "the global shift of the shipping sector towards green, low-carbon and intelligent development."
On the afternoon of October 28, three forums were held in succession: the New-Energy Vessel Technology Ecosystem Forum, the 2026 Forum on Integrated Development of Ship and Ocean Engineering Equipment, and the 2026 Ship-equipment Industry Innovation and Development Forum. Industry experts, scholars and business elites gathered to discuss key topics and offer suggestions for high-quality industrial development.
On October 29, events included the 2026 China-ROK Business Matching Conference for Shipbuilding and Offshore Equipment and the Autumn Technical Seminar organised by Dalian Shipping Association. On October 30, the China-Russia-ROK Supply-Demand Matching Conference for Shipyards, Ship-owners and Ship-equipment Manufacturers and the AI Logistics Digital-intelligent Technology Application and Empirical Salon took place.
These events assembled industry specialists, corporate executives and professional buyers to analyse industry trends and explore cooperation opportunities.
Long-term exhibitors have pre-reserved booths for the next edition of the exhibition. Some exhibitors occupying standard booths have stated they will expand their floor space and participate with custom-built stands next time.
According to preliminary statistics, pre-booked booth space for the 18th China Dalian International Maritime Exhibition, scheduled for autumn 2028 in Dalian, has already reached nearly 50 per cent on closing day.