LANZHOU, July 10 -- The 29th China Lanzhou Investment and Trade Fair concluded on Monday, with robust growth in the number of deals signed during the event held in northwest China's Gansu Province.

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.

The contracts were mostly in the areas including new energy and new materials, equipment manufacturing, modern agriculture, and information technology.

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.

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.