As the New Year and the Spring Festival approach, the gold market in Shenzhen City, south China's Guangdong Province, is experiencing a peak seasonal demand.
Shuibei market, a gold jewelry manufacturing and trading hub in Shenzhen, consumer flow and gold sales are both seeing a spike.
With international gold prices lowered recently, some traditional retail gold stores have seen prices drop below 800 yuan (more than 109 U.S. dollars) per gram.
At Shuibei market, gold prices even have come down to 622 yuan (more than 85 U.S. dollars) per gram.
The price drop, combined with the approach of holidays, has sparked a rush in the gold market.
On weekends, the market has been buzzing with activity, drawing crowds of eager shoppers.
"The foot traffic has increased by about 40 percent compared to last month. Especially on weekends, the crowd is so large that some salespeople struggle to keep up with demand," said Wu Qian, a gold retailer at Shuibei market.
Despite the price adjustment, consumers remain cautious about purchasing large-weight gold items.
As a result, small-weight gold jewelry has become more popular. Additionally, gold pieces featuring the snake -- the zodiac sign of 2025 -- are trending, with many wholesalers crowded with retailers from across the country.
"I'm here mainly to buy the 12 Chinese zodiac animal-themed bracelets, especially the ones featuring the snake. Besides that, I'll also be picking up related products like necklaces, pendants, earrings, and rings," said a retailer from southwest China's Sichuan Province.
Shenzhen's gold market sees consumption upsurge
Hundreds of activists from Latin America, North America and Europe have arrived in Cuba as part of an international solidarity convoy, bringing over 20 tons of humanitarian aid for Cubans struggling with a severe economic and energy crisis.
The first members of the convoy arrived in Cuba by air while a second group is expected to come aboard a flotilla that sailed out of Mexico.
The first group was officially welcomed to Cuba during a ceremony in Havana, where Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel expressed appreciation for the solidarity at a critical time for the Cuban people.
The group brought humanitarian aid to local hospitals including medicines to treat cancer patients. The activists were briefed about the hardships currently being faced by Cubans.
Convoy organizers met with Cuban government officials and talked to the media about their initiative.
"There are deeply humanistic motivations for this convoy. That's why people are conducting these 'acopios,' these aid collections in their own communities, in their own plazas, in their own homes, packing suitcases full of basic medicines that the blockade seeks to prevent the Cuban people from accessing," said David Adler, a convoy coordinator.
Cubans have endured a deep economic crisis for the past few years, made worse by a U.S. embargo. A recent oil blockade against the country has caused a severe energy shortage.
"For us, it's a good opportunity because we are walking in the neighborhoods, we are talking to ordinary people, we are hearing people's stories. With no intermediaries, we are hearing how difficult life is right now, how it's been difficult over the last few years but how its gotten infinitely worse in the last three months because of the fuel blockade brought on by Trump," said Manolo De Los Santos, the executive director of The People's Forum.
The activists said their task is to shed light on what U.S. government policies are doing to Cuba. British Member of Parliament Jeremy Corbyn, who has joined other parliamentarians in the convoy, said that their presence in Cuba is sending a clear message.
"I think the images around the world of ordinary people coming to Cuba with the necessary equipment for children to be treated in hospital, to repair the damaged electricity system and all the rest of it is very important, and I think that will lead to pressure on governments all around the world," said Corbyn.
The 10th Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), which concluded in the Colombian capital Bogota on Saturday, adopted the Bogota Declaration, calling on relevant countries to abide by UN resolutions and end the economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said in his speech that Cuba is facing severe challenges and is engaged in a struggle for dignity and freedom. Cuba is willing to conduct serious and responsible dialogue with the United States on the basis of mutual respect, but the precondition is that neither side should interfere in each other's internal affairs or their respective political, economic and social systems.
Global activists arrive in Cuba with humanitarian aid
