Shanghai Daily news

Coca-cola will be the exclusive supplier of most non-alcohol beverages for World Expo 2010.

It became the Expo's seventh global partner, and the first from the United States, after officials from the company and the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination signed an agreement yesterday.

"We appreciate Coca-Cola's international marketing experience and hope to achieve a win-win success," Chen Xianjin, the bureau's deputy director, said.

In addition to coke, Coca-cola will provide a variety of beverages for World Expo including drinking water, fruit and vegetable juice and coffee, he said.

Global partners for World Expo 2010 can use the Expo brand to promote its business, have priority to participate in the event and can even open its own enterprise pavilion.

Doug Jackson, president of Coca-Cola China, said: "Coca-Cola is well placed to undertake the huge task to provide beverages to the estimated 70 million visitors to Shanghai."

He said his company had launched a global innovation center in the city to provide innovative and tasty beverages for Chinese consumers.

In a news release, Muhtar Kent, president of Coca-Cola company, said: "The World Expo 2010 provides our company a great platform to showcase our company's future to the world community." He also said his associates and partners were excited about the continued world focus on China.

Coca-Cola has a long connection with Shanghai. It was where it first came to China in 1927.

The World Expo's other global partners so far are China Eastern Airlines, China Mobile, China Telecom, the Bank of Communications, a consortium of Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation Group and General Motors, and Siemens.

Shanghai is expected to select several other companies as global partners over the next few months.