Article | Reporter from Outlook Newsweek: Yu Jiaxin, Qu Lingyan, Wei Donghua

◇ "Made in Yiwu" goes global because it has the world's largest wholesale market for small commodities, and it also originates from the continuously improving quality and brand of "Made in China"

A series of new models and business models, such as cloud procurement, overseas sub markets, overseas warehouses, and proxy exhibitions, have emerged one after another. Amidst the global trade downturn, Yiwu has taken great strides to go global, and exports have grown significantly against the trend

People from different countries choose to stay in Yiwu because there is a diverse, inclusive, open, and harmonious cultural environment here

40 years ago, the "road market" has now transformed into the world's largest small commodity market. "Buy the world, sell the world": 2.1 million goods from all over the world gather here, and are sold to more than 230 countries and regions worldwide. Relevant data has become a weather vane for predicting global economic trends; Over ten thousand foreign businessmen from over 100 countries and regions with different cultures and customs live and work in harmony here

This is Yiwu, Zhejiang, China, and also the world's Yiwu.

Over the past 40 years, Yiwu has continued to strive and created an inexplicable, groundless, and golden experience, achieving its own leapfrog development. In accelerating the construction of a new development pattern, Yiwu has provided high-quality development samples.

​

Window for Upgrading 'Made in China'

Adhering to the principles of "promoting commerce and building a city" and "trade industry linkage", today's Yiwu market has become an important gateway for small commodity manufacturing to go global. This has driven more than 20 industrial clusters and 2.1 million small and medium-sized enterprises across the country, with products exported to 233 countries and regions, and continuously exporting Chinese small commodity quality, brands, and standards to the world.

This winter is not too cold. Walking in the third district of Yiwu International Trade City, one can fully feel the temperature brought by the Qatar World Cup to the export of sports goods merchants.

Some people say that "made in Yiwu" and "kicked" to the World Cup. Flags from the top 32, cheering horns and whistles, football, jerseys, World Cup decorations and pillows... According to the estimation of the Yiwu Sports Goods Association, "Made in Yiwu" accounts for almost 70% of the entire World Cup surrounding commodity market.

'Made in Yiwu' has gone global because it has the world's largest wholesale market for small commodities, and also stems from the continuously improving quality and brand of 'Made in China'.

Wu Xiaoming, the founder of Yiwu Aokai Sports Goods Co., Ltd., deeply feels this. As one of the officially authorized souvenir football manufacturers for the Qatar World Cup, Wu Xiaoming's order volume increased by 70% year-on-year, and he rushed to produce 100000 football balls in 50 days at his busiest time.

A seemingly ordinary football needs to go through 10 processes including cutting, cutting, printing, dyeing, bladder installation, and sewing. On the automated printing production line of Wu Xiaoming's football factory, a complete ball skin can be completed in three seconds, efficiently and accurately. Wu Xiaoming has never played football, but he is known as the "Emperor of Understanding Football". Holding a football in his hand, he only needs to glance to know if the pattern is aligned and the corners are neat.

"What we do is our own brand, and the production style is our own the final say, and the profit is also higher." Wu Xiaoming, who started the OEM business, chose to establish his own brand in 2000. He sighed, "It's like raising a child on his own. Watching him grow day by day gives him a great sense of achievement

Nowadays, in Yiwu, merchants like Wu Xiaoming who specialize in self owned brands can be seen everywhere. From selling commodities to self production and self marketing, from imitation to innovation, from original equipment manufacturer to private brand, the changes in Yiwu's market form show the vitality of the city, and also reflect the pace of transformation and upgrading of China's manufacturing industry.

Innovation is the primary driving force. In the past decade, the added value of China's manufacturing industry has increased from 16.98 trillion yuan to nearly 31.4 trillion yuan, accounting for nearly 30% of the global market share from 22.5%, and maintaining its position as the world's largest manufacturing country. Yiwu, the barometer of China's foreign trade, has become a window to observe the vitality of China's manufacturing industry.

There is also big technology behind small products. At the Yiwu Keraite Digital Brand Service Center, various products of Yiwu stationery leading enterprises are gathered. In the past, everyone competed for the lowest price, but now they are competing to consider who can better meet user needs. "Huang Ping, Vice President of the Yiwu Cultural Goods Industry Association, said that behind the changes in stationery pens is the progress and innovation of process technology.

From initially exporting small commodities to now exporting solar photovoltaic panels, automotive vehicles and spare parts, intelligent equipment, etc., the goods carried by the "Yixin Europe" train operated by Yiwu have also witnessed the iterative upgrade of "Made in China".

The term 'something out of nothing' used to describe the development of Yiwu is now also a reflection of the development of Yiwu's photovoltaic industry. Adhering to the principle of putting projects as the king and attracting strong talents, Yiwu has started from scratch and created two modern manufacturing clusters with a scale of 100 billion, namely information optoelectronics and automotive manufacturing. In 2020, the total output value of industries above designated size in Yiwu exceeded 100 billion yuan for the first time. In the first half of this year, the core industries of Yiwu's digital economy, including manufacturing, energy conservation and environmental protection manufacturing, and strategic emerging industries, saw year-on-year growth of over 90%, 80%, and 70%, respectively.

At the intersection of Yiwu Shangcheng Avenue and Futian Road, a brand new digital market is emerging. This market, which targets the demand of the new energy market and is based on its own advantages, will become the first professional market for showcasing and trading new energy products in China.

New market, new industry, new future. In the next five years, more emerging industries such as fashion, information, equipment, and health will become new growth points for Yiwu's economy and continue to witness the sonorous pace of China's economic transformation and upgrading.

Important nodes of domestic and international dual circulation

Following the trend of development and adhering to reform and opening up, the Yiwu market has become an important node in integrating into the dual cycle. In the past decade, Yiwu's export volume has increased by 5.4 times, while its import volume has increased by nearly 10 times. The internal logistics directly reaches more than 1500 counties and cities, the external connection is "the Belt and Road", and 275 international special lines are all over the world. Vice Minister of Commerce Sheng Qiuping stated that the Yiwu experience is a typical case of "opening up domestic and foreign trade and building a dual circulation".

If overseas buyers cannot come, we will open the market to their doorstep. On June 30th of this year, the first overseas sub market of the "World Supermarket" Yiwu was established in Dubai.

Covering an area of 200000 square meters and with a total investment of approximately 1.06 billion yuan, this small commodity market will "move" millions of products from Yiwu to Dubai, allowing overseas buyers to see samples, select products, and place orders at their doorstep.

Settle in Dubai and expand globally. Yiwu is firmly committed to "going global", and a number of new models and business formats have emerged, including cloud procurement, overseas sub markets, overseas warehouses, and proxy exhibitions. Despite the global trade downturn, Yiwu's exports are still growing significantly against the trend. In the first 10 months of this year, the total import and export value of Yiwu reached 397.87 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 27.8%.

It's better to take the initiative than to wait passively. This kind of aggressiveness and resilience is a gene engraved in the bones of Yiwu's growth process, and it is also a code for China to create development miracles.

From the pilot of comprehensive international trade reform in Yiwu to the replication and promotion of Yiwu's pioneering "market procurement" trade method nationwide; From the approval to establish a comprehensive cross-border e-commerce pilot zone, to the establishment of the Yiwu International Trade Comprehensive Reform Pilot Zone... a series of reform and opening up measures have helped Yiwu grow from a regional market to a global market.

In the past decade, Yiwu's export volume has jumped from 56.91 billion yuan to 36.591 billion yuan, an increase of 5.4 times, contributing one eighth of the province's and one fifty-five percent of the country's export volume to one tenth of the national territory.

As early as 2013, when the outside world believed that e-commerce would make the "world supermarket" disappear, Yiwu made a choice with the courage and action of "e-commerce for market". In 2020, Yiwu once again seized the digital opportunity and launched Chinabooks in October of that year. So far, it has generated over ten million yuan in transaction volume.

In the exhibition hall of Liu Junming, General Manager of Yiling Nuo Sanitary Ware Co., Ltd. in Yiwu City, several staff members are busy tapping their computers and communicating online with customers on the other side of the ocean. There is also a group of people in the live broadcast room preparing for the next day's overseas live broadcast, "he said.

Liu Junming admitted that the epidemic has made it more difficult to meet customers, but there are also business opportunities during the crisis. Relying on these years of online operation experience, Liu Junming has fully entered the official online trading platform of the Yiwu market - Chinabooks, utilizing the private domain traffic on the platform to accurately attract customers. In the first half of this year, 80% of our new customers came from online sources. Through online communication, we also developed new products based on customer needs

Adapt to the trend and start a new era. In the first move of seizing the initiative in development, Yiwu strives to take a faster position.

Zhang Jiying, the person in charge of Xingbao Umbrella Industry, has been working as a high-end umbrella for over a decade, with customers in over 100 countries and regions across five continents. Now, she is accelerating her approach to domestic consumers. "Umbrellas are not only a shelter from the wind and rain, but also our fashion accessories." Zhang Jiying said that seizing the opportunity of upgrading the domestic consumer market will be able to support a Xintiandi.

Today's Yiwu has internal links to 287 secondary sub markets across the country, with direct logistics reaching over 1500 counties and cities; The "the Belt and Road", 156 overseas warehouses and 275 "Global Yida" international lines are connected to the outside world to form a global trade service network.

Based on the domestic market, and connecting the two markets and resources through import and export. Vice Minister of Commerce Sheng Qiuping stated that the Yiwu experience is a typical case of "opening up domestic and foreign trade and building a dual circulation".

In the view of Zhou Huaishan, Executive Director of Yishang Think Tank, Yiwu has shown a high degree of market sensitivity in the face of complex and ever-changing external environments. From masks and protective clothing to heating appliances, to products around the World Cup, hot production and sales spots have emerged one by one, demonstrating the huge advantage of the Yiwu market in promoting domestic and international dual circulation.

A mutually beneficial and win-win platform for China and the world

In the past decade of the new era, Yiwu has entered the "fast lane" of development. Since the beginning of this year, the number of "Yixin Europe" trains has exceeded 2000, making significant contributions to stabilizing the international supply chain. In Yiwu, there are over 8000 foreign investment institutions of various types, with 15000 permanent foreign investors. The respectful, inclusive, open, and diverse environment is the attraction of Yiwu and the charm of China in attracting global foreign investment.

Recently, at the Yiwu Railway Port, a "Yixin Europe" China Europe freight train loaded with 100 standard boxes of "Made in Zhejiang" goods sounded its whistle and set off for Madrid, Spain. This is the 2000th train of the "Yixin Europe" China Europe freight train to operate this year, marking the early completion of the "Yixin Europe" annual travel target.

According to Chen Jinghua, General Manager of Yiwu Land Port Group Railway Port Development Co., Ltd., since its launch in 2014, the business scope of the "Yixin Europe" China Europe freight train has expanded to more than 50 countries and 160 cities overseas, not only benefiting countries and regions along the route, but also building a "golden bridge" for enhancing communication between the East and the West.

During the epidemic, the "steel camel caravan" went upstream, becoming a "life channel" and "fate link" for countries to work together to fight the epidemic. The "Yixin Europe" China Europe freight train has maintained continuous operation, not only providing a smooth international logistics transportation channel for the "World Capital of Small Commodities", but also making China's contribution to maintaining the stability of the global industrial and supply chains.

Mercedes Benz, in the "Yixin Europe" along the "the Belt and Road", sends a steady stream of Chinese small commodities to countries along the "Belt and Road", and also returns with boxes of "foreign goods". Zhou Xufeng, born in the famous hometown of overseas Chinese, Qingtian, Zhejiang, is engaged in the import business of Spanish red wine and olive oil. Taking advantage of the "east wind" of the Yixin Europe Europe Europe Express, his cross-border business has flourished, and the variety of imported red wine has increased seven or eight times in recent years.

Building professional import markets such as the China Import Commodity City, Yiwu China Import Commodity City Incubation Zone, and the import non-staple food market... Adhering to the dual wheel drive of export and import, Yiwu's market is accelerating transformation and upgrading. In the past 10 years, the import volume of Yiwu has jumped from 2.28 billion yuan to 24.39 billion yuan, an increase of nearly 10 times. Since 2020, it has achieved continuous double growth, and the concept of "buying the world" is becoming a tangible reality.

Respect, inclusiveness, and openness. "Jordanian Mohanaid, who runs a restaurant in Yiwu, uses these three words to summarize his understanding of Yiwu.

In Yiwu, Jimingshan Community in Jiangdong Street is known as the "United Nations Community", where nearly half of the permanent residents are foreigners from 58 countries and regions. The interweaving of different cultural customs and diverse foreign elements has become a window for the internationalization of this small town in central Zhejiang.

People from different countries choose to stay in Yiwu together, not only because they are looking for ways to do business and become rich, but also because of the diverse, inclusive, open, and harmonious cultural environment here.

In Yiwu, registering a foreign trade company only takes 3 days, and the fastest time to complete the customs clearance procedures for export goods is only 1 minute. Yiwu, which grew up eating reform meals, is generating more reform dividends and spillover effects in areas such as healthcare, children's education, and legal services.

On the path of high-quality development in Zhejiang and striving to promote the "two pioneers", Yiwu is also moving towards a more dynamic, open, and inclusive direction. Small commodities, big world. Yiwu provides a case study of China's win-win cooperation with the world, continuously telling the story of China in the new era to the world. The future of Yiwu is expected.