3D printers on display at the 20th China International Stationery and Gifts Exposition which commenced at the Ningbo International Conference and Exhibition Center on March 22. [Photo/Ningbo Evening News]

The 20th China International Stationery and Gifts Exposition (CNISE) commenced in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province on March 22.

A total of 1,482 exhibitors from across the world are attending the expo, showcasing a wide variety of products ranging from stationery to office supplies to stationery production and processing equipment.

The fair, which attracted a bevy of overseas purchasers from countries including India and Malaysia this year, has become an important platform to boost exchanges and cooperation among stationery enterprises around the world, said Zhou Huajie, general manager of Ningbo Zhongbo International Exhibition Co Ltd, the expo's organizer.

As a stationery manufacturing hub in China, Ningbo is home to more than 800 stationery manufacturers, of which over 300 have established a business presence overseas. The city's annual exports of stationery account for a quarter of the nation's total, official statistics show.

High-end color pencils on exhibition at the 20th China International Stationery and Gifts Exposition which commenced at the Ningbo International Conference and Exhibition Center on March 22. [Photo/Ningbo Evening News]