Yiwu's Digital Trade Center Sparks Global Business Surge, Reshaping International Commerce

The Yiwu Global Digital Trade Center has generated remarkable global business momentum since its October 14, 2025 opening, welcoming over 130,000 visitors on its inaugural day and maintaining an average of 71,000 daily global buyers throughout its first 11 days of operation. This surge has created significant economic ripple effects throughout the Yiwu region, with local hotels reporting full occupancy for two consecutive weeks and restaurants experiencing doubled table turnover rates as international buyers extend their stays through major trade events.

The center's impact reflects broader growth in Yiwu's foreign trade performance, with total import and export value reaching RMB 631.2 billion from January to September 2025, representing a 26.3% year-on-year increase. Trade with Belt and Road partner countries grew even faster at 28.9%, accounting for 68% of the city's total trade volume. This digital transformation marks Yiwu's evolution from a traditional small commodities market into a sophisticated digital trade powerhouse operating under a dual-engine model of "digital + trade."

Technological innovation has been central to the center's success, with the World Yiwu Trade Large Model registering over 30,000 users and AI product usage exceeding one billion calls as of October 2025. Thirteen AI applications now support comprehensive digitalization across design, translation, and fulfillment functions, enabling true borderless, real-time global trade. The consecutive hosting of major trade fairs including the Canton Fair and Yiwu Fair further amplified international procurement activity, with the 138th Canton Fair attracting nearly 240,000 overseas buyers from 223 countries and regions.

Notably, 65% of these buyers were visiting Yiwu for the first time, shifting from traditional sample viewing at the Canton Fair to direct order placement in Yiwu. Key product categories driving this growth include jewelry and accessories, creative trendy toys, drones and smart electronics, and beauty and personal care products. Yiwu's exports of mechanical and electrical products reached RMB 203 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, up 25.2% year-on-year, with particularly strong performance in smart devices.

The center represents more than physical expansion, embodying a comprehensive upgrade in trade philosophy and operational models. Anchored by the "Digital Trade Port," it integrates platforms for AI design, smart logistics, cross-border livestreaming, and data transactions, building a digital trade system driven by end-to-end perception and intelligent decision-making. This evolution aligns with optimization of Yiwu's foreign trade structure, where exports under the market procurement trade model reached RMB 458.38 billion from January to September 2025, up 29.4% year-on-year and accounting for 82.7% of the city's total exports.

Yiwu China Commodities City Group representatives emphasize the center's role in transforming Yiwu from the "World's Supermarket" into the "Global Source of Digital Trade Innovation." The sustained popularity demonstrates Yiwu's powerful ability to attract and convert global business opportunities while signaling that the city's path to global expansion is becoming more precise, efficient, and competitive through digital empowerment. As Yiwu serves increasingly as both a hub for global order exchange and a source of innovative trade models, it continues providing the "Yiwu Sample" for China's high-quality trade development.