Yiwu Zhejiang and Alibaba announced the co-construction of eWTP to explore new trade rules and new models

BEIJING, Hangzhou, June 20 (Huang Hui) On June 19, the Yiwu Municipal Government of Zhejiang Province and Alibaba Group signed the eWTP (World Electronic Trade Platform) strategic cooperation agreement, marking the formal landing of eWTP in Yiwu, Zhejiang Province. It is understood that the two sides will accelerate the industrial digital transformation, promote the integration and development of eWTP and Yiwu physical market, innovate the import and export trade mode, jointly build intelligent logistics hub, and develop new trade finance.

On the spot, Zhang Yong, CEO of Alibaba Group, said, "Yiwu will become the highland for Chinese commodities to go global." Talking about the relationship between Alibaba and Yiwu, he described it in four words: "God has known each other for a long time". "Both sides share a common exploration history in helping small and medium-sized enterprises to trade globally. Yiwu brings together global purchasers, Alibaba platform brings together millions of businesses and hundreds of millions of consumers, and the two ecologies coming together will produce new chemical reactions."

Lin Yi, Standing Committee of Jinhua Municipal Committee and Secretary of Yiwu Municipal Party Committee, said: "The signing of eWTP between Alibaba and Yiwu marks the joint efforts of the two largest online and offline markets to build a global innovation center for eWTP in Yiwu and work out new trade rules with small and medium-sized enterprises around the world." According to Lin Yi, the first 15 eWTP core projects have been progressing in an orderly manner. Among them, the two sides will open high-speed channels for small-scale and small-batch online trade exports, supporting new service systems such as customs, taxation, foreign exchange, finance and so on.

The history of Yiwu small commodity market is that small and medium-sized enterprises actively innovate and embrace change. Yiwu's first generation of individual businessmen and businessmen relied on the traditional distribution market to do business. Later, thousands of Internet businessmen emerged in Yiwu, bringing business to the world on the platform of electronic commerce. Alibaba International Station platform data show that in fiscal year 2019, Yiwu regional online trading volume increased 117% year-on-year, while online trading for orders below $5000 increased 182% year-on-year.

Yiwu Yixiu Maternal and Infant Products Co., Ltd. is one of the representatives. As a Alibaba international station, most of its products were exported to Europe and the United States. Now the focus is on exporting "one belt and one road" country. In June 2018, on Alibaba International Station, the company first contacted Nigerian customers. "We started to try step by step with the mentality that the other party might be a cheater, and then we found out that it was really a big customer." Wang Jinghua, general manager of Yiwu Yixiu Maternal and Infant Products Co., Ltd., told reporters that although the cooperation was smooth, there were difficulties in payment and customs clearance during the cooperation process.

"When the customer returned home, he sent us a handwritten water sheet of $10,000 without a chapter. This is the first time that we have encountered this situation - the water sheet has no chapters and is handwritten. Wang Jinghua says there are also problems with customer payments. "They can only pay $10,000 a day, and it takes almost two consecutive weeks for a partnership to complete."

With the participation of Yiwu in the co-construction of eWTP, Yiwu will bring new opportunities for SMEs. More SMEs will change from passive participants in Global trade to new game makers.

On the spot, Zhang Yong also stressed: "Since Yiwu is positioned as the"capital of small commodities in the world", then the merchants should come not only from China, but also from the world, not only from purchasers in more than 200 countries, but also from producers and traders in more than 200 countries." He said that Ali is willing to work with Yiwu to make trade more convenient, more inclusive and better, so that "the world's small commodity capital" can stand at the top of the world.