"World's supermarket" embraces global trade with vitality, confidence

This photo taken on July 29, 2024 shows an exterior view of the Yiwu International Trade Market in Yiwu, east China's Zhejiang Province. [Xinhua/Li He]

HANGZHOU -- As the Paris Olympics kicked off, 30,000 soccer balls made by Minsa, a Chinese sports brand based in east China's Yiwu, arrived over 10,000 kilometers away in Africa. Their design includes purple elements, as purple is one of the main colors of the Olympic venues.

At the same time, Minsa founder Chen Shaomei was welcoming first-time foreign customers to his store in the Yiwu International Trade Market in Zhejiang Province, known as the "world's supermarket."

"Major events like the UEFA Euro 2024 and the Olympics have ignited a global passion for football, boosting our sales. Our factory is fully booked until the end of August," Chen said. His products, which include soccer balls, basketballs and volleyballs, are exported to over 100 countries, with 90 percent of the company's business being international.

Chen's store is one of 75,000 in the world's largest small-commodity wholesale market. The vastness of the market is staggering -- it would take over 15 months to visit each shop for just three minutes. Over 2.1 million types of goods are distributed around the world from the Yiwu market.

Data shows that Yiwu's foreign trade growth has outpaced that of Zhejiang Province and China. From January to June this year, Yiwu's import and export volume totaled 324.77 billion yuan (45.5 billion U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 20.8 percent. Exports alone reached 288.03 billion yuan, growing 21.4 percent.

Yiwu's booming orders have been attributed to its rapid updates in independent design concepts and its support of new technology platforms.

Liu Pingjuan, founder of Yiwu kitchenware brand Chuangyi Kitchenware, is a beneficiary of the Chinagoods digital trade services platform, which has helped businesses connect with overseas markets.

In October 2023, the world's first large language model in the commodity trade sector and an upgraded Chinagoods AI creative services platform were unveiled at the Yiwu Expo. They allow videos in Chinese to be converted into 36 languages with a simple click after they are uploaded to the platform.

"Technology upgrades have broadened our market reach. Now, I often wake up to find customers adding me on WeChat in the middle of the night," Liu said.

Yiwu's business owners are not simply waiting for international customers to visit their stores, they are also embarking on a journey to expand their markets globally in the new economic climate.

Last November, the Yiwu Cultural Products Industry Association held the 2023 Indonesia ASEAN Stationery and Gifts Expo in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, with over 300 businesspeople from Yiwu's cultural products sector participating. The expo was Yiwu's first overseas trade fair dedicated to one specific industry.

According to its president, Huang Changchao, the association's promotional efforts will extend to medium-sized Indonesian cities with populations of 500,000 this year, following endeavors that began at the end of last year to promote brands in cities with populations exceeding 1 million.

"Indonesia is key for us to fully open up the Southeast Asian market, which has a large population and cultural affinity with China, making it easier for our cultural and creative products to establish a brand presence," Huang said.

Reform has also been a driving force behind the vigorous development of various market entities in Yiwu.

In November 2006, when Zhejiang issued a document on expanding Yiwu's economic and social management authority, 131 management responsibilities were delegated to the county-level region of Yiwu. Local authorities are now entitled to issue foreign trade operator registrations and verification letters for invitations extended to foreigners who apply for Chinese visas, among other processes.

Reforms in Yiwu are ongoing and include accelerating the cultivation of new business models, improving logistics services and innovating supply chain financial services.

"No one can better appreciate the improvements in the business environment than us businesspeople rooted in Yiwu. Despite the challenges and bottlenecks in various industries, we remain confident and motivated to embrace the global market," Huang said. 

Foreign merchants select goods at the Yiwu International Trade Market in Yiwu, east China's Zhejiang Province, July 29, 2024. [Xinhua/Li He]

Foreign merchants visit the Yiwu International Trade Market in Yiwu, east China's Zhejiang Province, July 29, 2024. [Xinhua/Li He]