Sergei Stepashin, chief of Russia's Audit Chamber and Chairman of the Union of Russian Book Publishers, addressed the opening ceremony, congratulating the organizers and visitors on the opening.
"More and more people visit the Moscow fair every year," Stepashin said. "Russia's book industry is developing briskly. Russia is ranked among the five leading countries in terms of the number of books published - about 700 million a year - and in terms of readers' numbers."
The Union of Russian Book Publishers currently includes leading publishers, distributors and writers, Stepashin said. On Wednesday, publishers are expected to sign a charter of business ethics, he said.
The organizing committee said 3,000 companies from 54 countries were registered to participate. The fair features more than 100,000 books provided by publishers from across Russia, the former Soviet republics and other countries.
The fair's conference halls will host more than 100 conferences, meetings with writers, roundtables and presentation ceremonies.
