East China trade hub transitions from local market to global stage

JINAN — In Linyi, East China's Shandong province, a vast marketplace is rewriting its role, transforming from a domestic wholesale powerhouse into a dynamic international trade hub that seamlessly connects Chinese factories with buyers and products from around the globe.

Linyi Trade City, one of China's largest professional market clusters, is now attracting a steady influx of international entrepreneurs.

Among them is Emmanuel Jerry Donkor from Ghana, who, after graduating from Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, identified Linyi's robust supply chain and logistical capabilities as a promising opportunity.

"Previously, we assisted merchants from our home country in sourcing products. Now, we not only introduce goods from Linyi to Ghana, but also bring Ghanaian products here," he said.

Donkor's story is just one of many at Linyi Trade City, one of China's largest wholesale market clusters, which is increasingly turning its gaze outward to global markets. From January to November 2025, the mall hosted 90 events tailored for international buyers, attracting 44,500 purchasing trips by foreign merchants, a year-on-year surge of 47.85 percent, with intended transactions reaching 23.67 billion yuan ($3.39 billion).

As foreign merchants flock to the city, local businesses are venturing out. At the warehouse of Shandong Haoduobao Supply Chain Co Ltd, founder Geng Yanzhou showcased a "variety store" stretching over 10,000 square meters.

Rows of shelves were packed with tens of thousands of items, ranging from innovative stationery and plush toys, to kitchenware and household goods, mostly priced between 3 and 10 yuan.

Geng's entrepreneurial journey mirrors this trade city's own evolution. Starting from a humble local "two-yuan store", he has now exported the entire high-value, one-stop shopping model to partners in Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America.

"Linyi's competitive sourcing and logistics advantages make this model highly viable," Geng explained. "Items priced at just 2 yuan here are hits in Latin American 'one-dollar stores'. A partner in Nicaragua recouped his entire investment in just 23 days."

Since October 2025, four such stores have opened in Angola, generating daily revenues exceeding 200,000 yuan and consistently drawing long queues of customers. "These stores serve as live demonstrations of the model's potential, attracting a growing number of interested foreign entrepreneurs," Geng added.

Driving this global reach is Linyi's robust logistics network. The Linyi modern logistics city now hosts more than 1,700 freight companies and serves as a key node for Eurasian trade. Among them, Shandong Linmanou International Logistics Co Ltd operates a rapidly expanding fleet under the TIR system, enabling faster road transport to countries like Russia and Kazakhstan.

The TIR system, short for Transports Internationaux Routiers or International Road Transport, is an international customs transit system that helps save time and money for transport operators and customs authorities when moving goods across borders.

Notably, shipping goods from Linyi to Moscow via TIR takes fewer than 10 days, much quicker than the more than 20 days required by traditional rail transport.

The westward shift of logistics has unlocked new space for the trade city's strategic transformation. The former site of the bustling Jinlan logistics base now houses the new Lantian North International Automobile City, where refurbished used cars from various brands undergo preparation for export.

"Since its launch in August 2025, the auto city has been exporting about 900 vehicles per month to over 20 countries and regions across Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe," said Hua Shuyong, chairman of Shandong Lantian Investment Group Co Ltd. "Chinese vehicles have gained strong international recognition, creating a seller's market environment. Around 20 foreign buyers are now based here aiming to snap up and ship vehicles immediately."

The recommendations for formulating China's 15th Five-Year Plan, which charts the course for the development of the world's second-largest economy in the 2026-30 period, have identified achieving substantial progress in high-quality development as a key objective.

To support this transformation, the Shandong provincial government unveiled a guideline in late 2025 aimed at upgrading Linyi Trade City into a strategic hub for the province's high-standard opening-up initiatives.

"In the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan, internationalization and digitalization of the trade city will be our top priorities," said Wu Chuanliang, director of the Linyi Commerce Bureau and the trade city's administrative committee. "This means strengthening our global market reach, enhancing digital infrastructure, and optimizing modern logistics to ensure sustained high-quality growth."

Xinhua