The opening ceremony was presided over by His Majesty King Juan Carlos, accompanied by the President of the High Council of Chambers of Commerce, Mr Javier Gómez-Navarro and the State Secretary for Tourism and Trade, Mr Pedro Mejía. In his speech, H.M. King Juan Carlos highlighted the growing commercial success that accompanies an increasing amount of integration both at a European level and also worldwide. He pointed out that the Chambers of Commerce should aim to fulfil their real raison d'être: «Representation, promotion and defence of the general interests of trade, industry and navigation ».

With the slogan ‘Cámaras Contigo’ (‘The Chambers are with you’), the main aims of the Meeting were to present the principal strategies for action for the coming years and also to re-state the institutional commitment of the Chambers of Commerce as a unifying force for the Spanish commercial system. During the initial session of the Meeting, Marie-Hélène Antolin presented a papar entitled:

‘Competitiveness in the Spanish car industry’. After a short introduction of the company, she described the situation the sector is currently going through, stressing the fact that «there is no crisis in the demand for vehicles, but in the management of companies».

During her intervention, Marie-Hélène pointed out that long-term vision, training, people, adaptation to the  environment, and the need for self-criticismare key issues that Grupo Antolin considers to be essential if we want to be competitive. She also highlighted the fact that «remaining constantly alert is fundamental for survival ». The President of the Government, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, presided over the closing ceremony, in which he emphasised the crucial role played by the Chambers of Commerce in the economic development of Spain and said that his presence at the closing ceremony of the Meeting vouched for his recognition of their work.