LANZHOU, July 11 (Xinhua) -- At the Russian pavilion at a trade fair in Lanzhou, the capital of northwest China's Gansu Province, Alisa Jurgenson was treating a flood of guests with Russian delicacies.

"This is my first time participating in the fair. Russian dairy products and handicrafts are popular with local customers," Jurgenson said. As a sales specialist in a trading company, she hopes to expand the company's presence in the vast Chinese market through the fair.

The 29th China Lanzhou Investment and Trade Fair kicked off on July 6 and concluded on Monday. First held in 1993, the fair serves as a window for the opening of northwestern China and is a major event for Belt and Road economic and trade cooperation.

A total of 1,172 contracts were inked during the five-day fair, a rise of 30.51 percent from the event's previous edition, said Zhang Yinghua, head of the provincial commerce department.

Saudi Arabia and Thailand were present as the guest countries of honor at this year's fair. The number of guests to the fair exceeded 40,000, and more than 1,600 enterprises from home and abroad participated in the event.

More than 20 enterprises from Thailand took part in this year's fair. Standing in front of the Thailand pavilion, Tawat Mahitapong, who runs a food company, had a busy schedule touting for business.

"We've brought a wide variety of products this year, hoping to build a stronger brand recognition in China and find more partners," Mahitapong said. As an old friend of the fair, he is confident about the development prospects of China's northwestern market.

Customs data shows the total trade volume between Thailand and Gansu Province increased by a whopping 17 times to 763 million yuan (about 106 million U.S. dollars) in the first five months.

At this year's trade fair, more companies from home and abroad are eyeing cooperation opportunities in modern agriculture, desertification control, and new energy development.

Li Bo, senior regional sales manager at Big Dutchman China Head Office and a newcomer to the fair, plans to conduct a market survey in Gansu following the fair.

"We are working on a modern hen breeding industrial park in Gansu's Pingliang City. We hope to take this fair as a springboard to explore the vast northwestern Chinese market," Li said.

Gansu will focus on developing the export-oriented agriculture economy, and deepen international cooperation on the processing and exporting of distinctive agriculture products, and agriculture exchange technologies, noted Ma Zhanying, a staffer at the Gansu provincial agriculture and rural affairs department.

At a forum held during the fair, Saleh Ali Khabti, deputy minister of investment of Saudi Arabia, said the cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Gansu on desertification control, water resource utilization, and new energy development anticipates a broad prospect and the fair will serve as a vital platform to share experiences and further boost collaboration.