Merchants pose for photos at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)
Merchants on Saturday kicked off the first business day of the Year of the Horse as the Yiwu International Trade City and the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, the world’s largest small-commodities hub, resumed operations after the Spring Festival holiday. According to local customs data, Yiwu’s total foreign trade reached 836.5 billion yuan (about 121.97 billion U.S. dollars) in 2025, achieving an increase of 25.1 percent year on year. Exports rose more than 24 percent, and imports over 32 percent.
Humanoid robots stage a performance at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)This photo taken on Feb. 28, 2026 shows a dragon dance performance at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)Foreign merchants buy commodities at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)Merchants are pictured at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)A foreign merchant (L) buys commodities at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)Foreign merchants buy commodities at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)A foreign merchant (C) receives an interview at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)Merchants pose for photos at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)Merchants pose for photos at the Global Digital Trade Center in Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang Province, Feb. 28, 2026. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)
Zamir Ahmed Awan is the founder and Chair of the Global Silk Route Research Alliance,
a think tank in Islamabad. He studied engineering at Shanghai University in the 1980s, and years later he went
back to China as Pakistan's science counsellor in Beijing, from 2010 until 2016,
working on science and higher education cooperation between the two countries.…
