The exhibition industry, despite its relative novelty, is actively developing and interacting with all sectors of the global and national economies. International exhibitions offer producers and exporters ways of developing new markets, displaying samples of goods, services and technologies. For the government, supporting exhibitors, both inside the country and internationally, has turned into one of the organizational forms of pursuing their most important economic interests. Due to the objective trends and in furtherance of national interests it has become necessary to develop a strategy for the development of the exhibition and trade fair industry, to determine its priorities with competitive advantages and to create integrated program/projectbased mechanisms for its implementation. A current trend in the development of the new industry consists in various forms and methods of its support at both the federal and regional levels. The issue of regulation and standardization of the exhibition industry, and training professional personnel has also been on the agenda. The fragmentary and discrete approach to creating standards for exhibition and fair activities should be replaced by comprehensive management. At the national level, it is also necessary to implement a systemic unified approach to financial motivation and compensation for costs of participation in exhibitions, and to use other support measures as aimed at both organizers of international exhibitions and exhibition facilities. The specified development trends of the brand-new exhibition and trade fair industry are being discussed in this paper.