UFI stands for Union of International Fairs UFI. At the 70th General Assembly in Cairo on October 20, 2003, the organization decided to rename itself as The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, still abbreviated as UFI, and remains the most important international organization in the world's exhibition industry to date. UFI is composed of exhibition organizers and exhibition center operators from around the world, as well as selected partners from major national and international exhibition associations and the exhibition industry. Its main objective is to represent, promote, and support the commercial interests of its members and the exhibition industry. UFI directly represents over 50000 exhibition industry professionals worldwide and also works closely with members of 67 national and regional associations.

Currently, nearly 900 member organizations from 84 countries around the world have signed up as members. This is a quality assurance for visitors and exhibitors. UFI members continue to provide a unique marketing platform for the international business community, aimed at developing excellent face-to-face business opportunities.

The China Datang International Hosiery Industry Expo (CIHIE), which has been held since 1999, was born in Zhuji, Zhejiang, the global sock capital. After 18 years, the scale of the exhibition has continued to expand and the industry influence has steadily increased, becoming one of the oldest sock industry trade events in China's history. In 2025, the CIHIE of Datang Socks Expo won UFI certification, opening a new starting point for international exhibitions. Looking back at the 2024 Datang Socks Expo, there was a breakthrough growth in the scale of the exhibition, the number of booths, and the number of participating companies. Various trendy socks, raw and auxiliary materials, intelligent equipment, e-commerce services, and other upstream and downstream enterprises in the sock industry chain were available at the exhibition site. Local enterprises in Zhuji, together with excellent sock brands and factories in other industrial clusters such as Yiwu and Haining, showcased the new technologies, designs, and products of Zhuji's sock industry in the global digital wave, bringing new vitality to the sock industry.

Looking ahead to 2025, CIHIE will be held from September 9-11, 2025 at Zhuji International Trade City. This exhibition will continue to leverage the advantages of the sock industry, ecology, and resources in the Zhuji region, and promote the development of the sock industry in various aspects such as fashionable design, functional materials, digital production, international marketing, and green industry. As the largest sock industry cluster in the world, the exhibition will also showcase new products, designs, and technologies related to the entire industry chain and categories from the source, build an efficient communication and cooperation platform, promote commercial transactions, and provide strong support for the comprehensive upgrading of the industry. At the same time, it will continuously explore the potential of enterprises, improve their new quality productivity, and lead the sock industry to a new stage of high-quality development.