Seven-man company grows into $3.4b trade behemoth

Xiamen International Trade Group started with seven people in 1980. Gao Shaoyong, president of ITG, said: "We had just a couple of chairs, two bicycles and a rented office."

Today, Xiamen ITG commands a valuation of 22.1 billion yuan ($3.35 billion). Xiamen ITG Holding, an A-share listed firm of the group, has since 2017 been among the Fortune 500 giants, one of the four such enterprises from Fujian province.

The year 1980 was key to its flying start as Xiamen city was designated as a special economic zone. Ever since, ITG grew and grew in its import-export business spanning bulk trade, financial services, supply chain management and retail sectors.

As a witness of the country's opening-up, ITG bears testimony that annual 30 percent growth in business volume is possible under the right circumstances.

"In Xiamen, the frontier of China's opening-up, ITG has grown from a local trade company to a comprehensive business," Gao said.

"ITG has witnessed ups and downs during the last four decades," he said, adding the company will exploit opportunities presented by the China-led Belt and Road Initiative to expand globally.

Toward this end, ITG has founded a subsidiary in Singapore, the world's renowned trade, finance and logistics center, for export of oil products and to offer related financial services.

It has also set up an arm in New Zealand to invest in forest-based resources for trade with a number of countries like India, South Korea and markets in Southeast Asia.

"The Belt and Road Initiative covers more than 60 countries and regions with 4.6 billion population and a collective GDP of $2.3 trillion," he said. "But its trade volume accounts for only 25 percent of the global amount. Their economies may not be big in size, but are higher in growth rates. There is big growth potential for investors."

Last September, when Xiamen hosted the Ninth BRICS Summit, leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa gathered in the city. BRICS leaders announced the Xiamen Declaration during the summit, calling for deeper cooperation among member countries.

"We have seen a clearer path to future upgrading and transformation following the BRICS summit," said Xu Xiaoxi, chairman of Xiamen ITG Holding.

Xiamen will explore innovative ways to deepen reform and opening-up, with advanced manufacturing and modern service sectors as pillars of its industry, Pei Jinjia, Party secretary of Xiamen, said.

The coastal city will strengthen cross-Straits cooperation and heighten relations with Belt and Road economies in the region, he said.