"The formerly-contracted tour to Hong Kong and Taiwan after the Macao exhibition was canceled, and we were stuck here to hold out, " said one of the organizers on Tuesday.

The Jingdezhen Porcelain Exhibition, which opened on April 18, would, otherwise, be a resounding event, since Macao people rarely had a chance of seeing such a large chinaware exhibition, where over 10,000 pieces of exquisite porcelain wares were on show and available for sale.

Since packaging and transportation of porcelain products are expensive, the organizer said, exhibitors usually try to clear their stocks at the end of a show. However, at the closure of the event on April 27, over half of the stocks were still left in stock leading to a loss of some US$192,000.

The organizer, which had held successful overseas exhibitions in many Asian countries, such as Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam, had hoped that an ensuing trip to Hong Kong and Taiwan can mend the disappointment. However, Taiwan enacted a tightened entry quarantine control last week triggered by an increase of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) cases, which suspended exhibitions from the mainland.

"The only solution for us now is to prolong the exhibition in Macao, and try to attract customers with the lowest price," he said.

The exhibition was brought to Macao after a smaller-scale porcelain show put on during last Spring Festival in February proved to be a success. At that exhibition, exhibitors brought more exquisite items like a number of big vase mimicking antiques of Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) and big porcelain Buddha statues in addition to porcelain utilities and decoration products.

(Xinhua News Agency May 7, 2003)