国际英语新闻：World's leading industrial expo opens in Hanover, Germany

HANOVER, Germany, April 18 (Xinhua) -- The Hanover industrial fair 2010, the world's leading annual expo for industry and technology, officially opened at Sunday night, ready to showcase the latest innovations and solutions on automation, energy efficiency, and digitalization in the next 5 days.

The opening ceremony started with a music show, performed by a female violoncello player and a robot drummer, their exquisite cooperation drawing great applause from audiences.

German Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle and Education and Research Minister Annette Schavan inaugurated the fair with Italian Economic Development Minister Claudio Scajola, whose country was this year's partner.

"We are here to showcase our companies, to demonstrate our enthusiasm for technological progress and of course, to make good business deals," Friedhelm Loh, president of German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturer's Association, said in the opening ceremony.

Some 4,800 exhibitors from over 60 countries and regions are to attend the expo, presenting their newly-designed products or leading-edge technologies, such as robots, software, renewable energy distribution solution and electric car engines.