Buyers line up near a mushroom-shaped booth at the 20th Hong Kong Book Fair, which runs from July 22 to 28 (CRIENGLISH.COM)

The annual Hong Kong Book Fair, one of Asia's most influential cultural events, kicked off Wednesday at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

More than 500 exhibitors from 20 countries and regions are participating in the seven-day exhibition, which was initiated in 1990. The number of visitors is expected to top 850,000 this time.

More than 100 publishers from the Chinese mainland are attracted to the event, bringing with them around 13,000 types of books. Around 900 square meters of exhibition area has been reserved for their counterparts from Taiwan, a record high in the event's history.

The Hong Kong Trade and Development Council, which organizes the event, has set up an International Cultural Village, providing a forum for international publishers from 11 countries. The countries consist of Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates.

On top of this, around 200 cultural activities, such as publication-related seminars, literature workshops and autograph sessions for new books, will be held in the coming days.

(CRIENGLISH.com July 22, 2009)