On the first day of 2025, Yiwu City in east China, known as the world's capital of small commodities, was bustling with activity as holidaymakers flocked to the one-stop shopping destination that offers a diverse range of products from around the world.
At the Yiwu China Import Commodities City, merchants showcased their best-selling items. Visitors could find global treasures including Spanish ham, South African and French wines, and more, all in one place.
The ongoing New Year Shopping Festival at the market features nearly 150,000 varieties of products from over 100 countries and regions. The market has also issued vouchers that allow shoppers to enjoy discounts of up to 50 percent on their purchases.
"I'm getting these stuffs at pretty good prices, about a third lower than usual," said Ms. Liu, a local shopper. This was the tenth New Year spent in Yiwu for Syrian businessman Mike, who just made a special trip to the market to begin his year.
"[Here,] you can buy products from any country. On the first day [of 2025], I came here to find food I can share with my family," Mike said. Mike shopped at a pilot store that's part of Yiwu's initiative to boost innovative development in the import sector. The store imports goods in bulk, selling products at prices up to 30 percent less than before.
"By this morning, we had already processed nearly 120 orders. We hope to expand our import channels in the new year and bring more high-quality foreign goods to the Yiwu market, allowing residents to buy even more affordable products," said Xu Zhijian, the manager of the pilot store.
Yiwu market starts 2025 with one-stop shopping experience for global treasures
The Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) is emerging as a key engine for China's fast-growing low-altitude economy by leveraging its dense industrial networks, efficient logistics systems, and rapid innovation capacity.
From logistics and manufacturing to urban services, the region is building an integrated industrial chain that allows low-altitude industries to scale up at unprecedented speed, thus turning drone-based applications from isolated trials into large-scale, commercial operations.
China's 15th Five-Year Plan, covering 2026 to 2030, calls for the cultivation of new pillar industries and the accelerated development of strategic emerging industrial clusters, including the low-altitude economy.
At a drone operations center in Bao'an District, Shenzhen City in south China's Guangdong Province, a dozen logistics drones take off and land within minutes. Urgently needed production parts, documents, and small parcels are dispatched from here to cities in the province including Dongguan, Zhongshan, and Zhuhai.
Behind these high-flying aircraft lies what observers describe as an "invisible industrial chain", built on speed and efficiency.
"Look at this aircraft. About 90 percent of its components come from nearby areas. Relying on Shenzhen's strong logistics capabilities and its complete supply chain, these parts can be delivered to our factory within half an hour for assembly, processing, and production," said Li Kunhuang, person-in-charge of Shenzhen GODO Innovation Technology Co., Ltd.
Once a new product is unveiled, testing and calibration begin immediately at the drone testing field. As soon as the process is completed, the new models can be put into real-world operation, realizing almost “zero delay” from research and development to application.
Supported by a robust industrial chain, low-altitude routes in Shenzhen are effectively connecting the urban landscape. From its Bao'an District to Songshan Lake in Dongguan City, production components can be delivered within one hour. Supplies are transported between Zhuhai City's Xiangzhou Port to Dong'ao Island in just 25 minutes. And light industrial goods can travel round-trip within a single day between Guzhen Town in Zhongshan City and Xinhui District in Jiangmen City.
More low-altitude application scenarios are expected to be implemented in the near future.
In Qianhai District, Shenzhen is accelerating the construction of a pilot demonstration zone of low-altitude integrated three-dimensional transportation hub.
"We have built the country's first low-altitude integrated three-dimensional transportation hub, and are gradually developing a pilot flight zone that integrates multiple scenarios such as inspection, logistics, and cultural tourism. This will provide technical support for the next step of commercializing cross-border logistics and emergency rescue services across the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area," said Wu Xuemin, head of the Shenzhen Qianhai Low-Altitude Integrated Three-Dimensional Transportation Hub Pilot Demonstration Zone.
Integrated supply chains propel Greater Bay Area's low-altitude economy growth
Integrated supply chains propel Greater Bay Area's low-altitude economy growth
