Industry news

A set of data shows that Yiwu City in Zhejiang Province will exceed 500 billion yuan in export volume by 2023; Bringing together over 2.1 million products across 26 major categories, connecting 32 million workers and 2.1 million enterprises; We have trade relations with over 200 countries and regions, attracting 15000 foreign residents and more than 8000 foreign investment entities; The daily average passenger flow of the International Trade City reaches 200000 people

The reform and opening up has made Yiwu a world supermarket that has gone from "buying and selling nationwide" to "buying and selling globally".

In September 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out during his inspection in Yiwu that "Yiwu's small commodities have broken through the big market and become a big industry. This place, neither by the sea nor by the border, how did it become a trading center of the world? It's because Yiwu people have achieved 'making something out of nothing' and 'inexplicable'. General Secretary once again talked about 'Yiwu's development experience'.

Comrade Xi Jinping vividly compared the institutional obstacles encountered in the development of Yiwu while working in Zhejiang: children grow too fast, but their clothes are too small. "We have to give the children who grow up fast a big piece of clothing.

In 2005, Yiwu's international trade volume exceeded its domestic trade volume for the first time. There are over 8000 foreign businessmen residing in Yiwu, and nearly 600 overseas enterprises have set up offices in Yiwu. However, as a county-level city, Yiwu's government's management authority has fallen behind the pace of economic and social development.

In the tide of reform and opening up, a capable government and an efficient market are indispensable.

Reform is imperative. Yiwu, the "fast growing child", has embarked on the process of "changing into bigger clothes": in November 2006, Zhejiang Province issued the "Several Opinions on Carrying out Pilot Work to Expand the Economic and Social Management Authority Reform of Yiwu City", which implemented an unprecedented expansion of power in Yiwu. In July 2009, the former Jinhua Customs Yiwu Office was officially upgraded to Yiwu Customs, under the jurisdiction of Hangzhou Customs

Yiwu, which has changed into big clothes, continues to grow taller and stronger: from 2011 to 2023, the total import and export volume of Yiwu's foreign trade increased from 25.504 billion yuan to 566.05 billion yuan, an increase of more than 20 times.

In the new era of comprehensive deepening of reforms, the "world capital of small commodities" that grows faster continues to play the role of changing clothes.

Tailoring new 'clothing', Yiwu is assessing the situation and focusing on expanding domestic and international markets and integrating into the domestic and international dual circulation.

Before, I used to be a 'sitting merchant' waiting for foreign merchants to come and do business; now I want to be an 'e-commerce' online and a 'traveling merchant' going out. "Zhang Jiying, who has been working in Yiwu for more than 20 years, has sold umbrellas to more than 100 countries and regions. Zhang Jiying said that it's different now from when her father taught her to 'farm without leaving the field, and shop without leaving the counter'. Last year, she followed Yiwu's "Brand Going Global" plan and participated in exhibitions in Japan, Dubai, and other places. In May of this year, she went to Morocco to attend the economic and trade docking conference.

Most of the businesses doing business in Yiwu are small and medium-sized enterprises, and the risk of individual enterprises going global is relatively high, making it more suitable for them to go global in groups. In order to better integrate into the new development pattern of service, Yiwu will implement the "Brand Going Global" action in 2023, organize 28 overseas economic and trade delegations, and attract over 1 million global buyers. Nowadays, more than 70% of merchants in Yiwu International Trade City also engage in online and offline business. In 2023, Yiwu will conduct 683000 live streaming sales, with an average of 1871 live streams per day.

Customizing new 'clothing', Yiwu implements precise policies to anchor the best combination of market functions and government actions.

On June 15th, the China Europe freight train loaded with 110 standard containers departed from Yiwu West Station and headed to Duisburg, Germany. This marks the smooth operation of the first domestic and international China Europe freight train in the Yangtze River Delta region, reducing the total travel time from 19 days to 13 days and significantly improving transportation efficiency and market competitiveness.

In the past, when Yiwu exported goods, they were usually transferred by land and then shipped by sea to ports such as Shanghai and Ningbo. This not only took a detour, but also made customs clearance procedures between countries more complicated, "said Ye Qiuran, Deputy General Manager of Yixin Europe Trade Service Group Co., Ltd." Sending goods from Yiwu to Europe by train is a strong demand from the market, but the reality is extremely difficult

Reform arises from problems and deepens through continuous problem-solving. In the autumn of 2013, the initiative of jointly building the "the Belt and Road" was put forward, and new development potential is surging. In November 2014, the first "Yixin Europe" China Europe freight train departed from Yiwu to the Spanish capital Madrid, and has since operated over 7400 trains. Liu Junming, a merchant at Yiwu International Trade City, said that in the past, due to the lack of direct export channels and seaports, he had little business dealings with Central Asian countries. Now, the five Central Asian countries have become his main customer gathering places.

Rushing to produce new clothes, Yiwu stands at the forefront, adhering to the principle of promoting reform, development, and innovation through opening up.

On July 2nd, rows of new energy vehicles were neatly parked at the Yiwu Port Motor Vehicle Registration Service Station. Subsequently, the staff of Yiwu Port drove the new energy vehicles into the container. The maritime forward service we provided this time allowed the new energy vehicle loading, maritime inspection and other processes that originally needed to be completed at Ningbo Port to arrive at Yiwu Port in advance, "said maritime law enforcement officer Chen Lei.

Behind this lies the promotion of reform and innovation through openness. Yiwu is connected to Ningbo Zhoushan Port, which has the world's largest cargo throughput, becoming the "sixth port area" of Ningbo Zhoushan Port, achieving "one declaration, one inspection, and one release" for export containers of sea rail intermodal trains. The inland counties in central Zhejiang, which do not rely on rivers, seas, or borders, have formed a three-dimensional open new pattern of "land, sea, air, rail, and mail", making "buying the world and selling the world" within reach.

The highlight is that Yiwu International Trade City, known for its small commodities, now has large commodities - the country's first new energy product market was put into operation last year. From solar powered lighting to new energy vehicles, almost all new energy products on the market can be purchased here, showcasing the vibrant vitality of China's "New Three".

Behind this lies the promotion of development through openness. Yiwu relies on its well connected logistics network to build the photovoltaic and optoelectronic industry from scratch. In 2023, the output value of this industry will exceed 80 billion yuan, becoming a microcosm of Yiwu's accelerated development of new quality productivity. Yiwu is putting on the latest trendy clothes.

The process of constantly changing clothes is a process of creating something out of nothing and innovating, as well as a process of gathering various production factors.

The masses push the government, and the government leads the people to run. Yiwu, where chicken feathers fly to the sky, has repeatedly created something out of nothing and something new, gradually reaching the point where small commodities are everywhere.

Yiwu people sigh: Yiwu's development may seem "inexplicable", but there is actually a "miracle" - the "miracle" fully respects the pioneering spirit of the masses, plays the "market card", eats the "reform rice", and takes the "open road". The market and the government each have their own positions and strengths, and the "invisible hand" and "visible hand" work together.

In the new era and new journey, Yiwu is writing a new chapter of the era of "small commodity market, constantly creating new brilliance".