YIWU, Aug. 13 - While Yiwu is best known as the world's export engine for small commodities, its imports are now catching up fast. In the first half of 2026, Yiwu's imports reached 65.70 billion yuan, up 39.1% year on year - far outpacing the 19.9% growth of total trade.
The rapid import growth reflects Yiwu's strategic shift toward a 'buy global, sell global' model. As the sole whitelisted enterprise for an import positive list under Zhejiang's comprehensive pilot for deepening international trade reform, Yiwu is channeling the massive outbound traffic of its export end back into imports.
In 2025, the city's total imports reached 105.8 billion yuan, up 32.3% year on year. Inside the Import Pavilion of Zone 5, goods from more than 100 countries are flowing into the Chinese market through channels such as the 'AiXiMao' self-operated brand.
Once scaled up, the import business will carry far higher gross margins than self-run export trading, helping improve the city's profit structure.
Industry observers note that the 'world supermarket' is no longer just shipping goods out - it is increasingly bringing the world in, deepening its integration into global value chains and laying the groundwork for a new chapter as a global digital-trade service provider.
