Holiday Inn Express, Office 1 and Vanke Among Companies to Exhibit at 10th Annual Franchising China Event in Shanghai

Global Sources' (Nasdaq: GSOL) 10th Annual Franchising China Conference & Exhibition ( http://www.franchisechina.com ) opens today and runs through tomorrow at Shanghai Mart.

Nearly 100 international and local franchisors and 20,000 entrepreneurs are expected to participate at the event and the two other legs of Franchising China in:

-- Guangzhou -- Nov. 12-13 at Jin Han Exhibition Center

-- Beijing -- Nov. 15-16 at China World Trade Center

Among the international brands set to exhibit are Athlete's Foot, Gloria Jean's Coffee, Holiday Inn Express, Meyer Cookware, Office 1, Subway and Super 8 Motels. Successful domestic China franchisors are also set to participate including Dio Coffee, Home Inn, Iceason, ILSA Laundry, JinJiang Inn, Vanke and Tayohya.

Exhibitors represent product categories ranging from retail, education, hotels, laundry services and food & beverage to beauty & health, automotive, commercial services and furniture/home products.

Global Sources' Chief Operating Officer, Craig Pepples, said: "Franchising is an ideal way for entrepreneurs to start a new business. Start-up costs are relatively low, with about one-third of franchises in China requiring an investment of less than 100,000 Yuan.

"And what better place to open a franchise than in Shanghai? Per capita income of permanent urban residents in Shanghai was more than US$ 7,000 in 2006, almost four times the national average. Residents also have the highest disposable income of any city in China.

"Franchising China not only offers would-be business owners a range of international and local franchises to choose from, we give them the knowledge they need to run it successfully. Plus, it's an excellent venue for people in the industry to network with current and future business partners, and to discuss new opportunities in China's booming franchise market."

Free Seminars Offering Best-of-Breed Franchising Insight

Free seminars and lectures will give attendees an overview of franchising as well as tips to operate franchises in specific industries.

The chairman of the International Franchise Association, Michael Isakson, is scheduled to be the keynote speaker on the first day of each show. He will share important aspects of how to evaluate a franchise before investing.

On the second day of each event, executives from Dio Coffee and JinJiang Inn are scheduled to discuss business opportunities created by the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Visitors can also attend Franchise Opportunity Seminars given by individual franchisors. Company representatives will introduce requirements for becoming a franchisee along with the benefits of their franchise systems. Seminars will be conducted by 14 different franchisors.

Seminar schedules, more event details and online pre-registration are available at http://www.franchisechina.com .

Global Sources Websites, Magazines and Trade Shows for China's B2B Market

Franchising China is an important part of Global Sources products and services enabling local and international suppliers to sell to China's domestic B2B market. These include Chief Executive China magazine and website ( http://www.ceconline.com ), Elegant Living magazine and website ( http://www.elegantlivingchina.com ) as well as the company's electronics industry focused trade magazines, websites and events.

About Franchising China

Organized by Global Sources (Nasdaq: GSOL) and sponsored by Chief Executive China ( http://www.ceconline.com ), Franchising China has been a pioneer in introducing international franchise exhibitions to China since 1998. Today, it's the region's premier multinational franchise event and a prime location for famous brands seeking business partners. As a result, the event has earned the repeated support of international associations such as the International Franchise Association (IFA), the Franchising and Licensing Association of Singapore (FLA) and the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade). Furthermore, the Shanghai show has received the US Department of Commerce's trade fair certification.

Franchising China exhibitors come from the US, Australia, Italy, Switzerland, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong and other countries, representing industries such as retail, food, education, training, business services and more. Past exhibitors include Subway, Athlete's Foot and other well-known brands. More than 20,000 visitors attended the 2006 Franchising China exhibition -- 80% of whom were senior managers.

About Global Sources

Global Sources is a leading business-to-business (B2B) media company and a primary facilitator of two-way trade with Greater China. The core business is facilitating trade from Greater China to the world, using a wide range of English-language media. The other key business segment facilitates trade from the world to Greater China using Chinese-language media.

The company provides sourcing information to volume buyers and integrated marketing services to suppliers. It helps a community of over 647,000 active buyers source more profitably from complex overseas supply markets. With the goal of providing the most effective ways possible to advertise, market and sell, Global Sources enables suppliers to sell to hard-to-reach buyers in over 230 countries.

The company offers the most extensive range of media and export marketing services in the industries it serves. It delivers information on 2 million products and more than 160,000 suppliers annually through 14 online marketplaces, 13 monthly magazines, over 100 sourcing research reports and nine specialized trade shows which run 22 times a year across seven cities.

Suppliers receive more than 23 million sales leads annually from buyers through Global Sources Online ( http://www.globalsources.com ) alone.

Global Sources has been facilitating global trade for 36 years. In mainland China it has over 2,000 team members in 44 locations, and a community of over 1 million registered online users and magazine readers for Chinese- language media.

For more information, please contact:
Global Sources Press Contact in Asia:
Camellia So
Tel: +852-2555-5021