All vibrant on the western front

Booming foreign trade

In late December, at the warehouse of Cathay Prosperity E-commerce (Xinjiang) in Kashgar, workers were busy packing products for export.

As the New Year approaches, Chinese products such as cellphone accessories, balloons, pajamas and kitchen utensils are in great demand from clients in European countries, said Zhang Qi, general manager of the company.

Since its establishment in 2020, the company has bought goods — mainly consumer electronics, clothes and shoes — from the Yangtze and Pearl river delta areas through e-commerce operators and then shipped them to Central Asia, Europe and other regions by air and road transportation.

Zhang said that thanks to Kashgar's unique geographical advantages as one of the best western channels for Chinese goods, the company's business is growing rapidly. Trade volume hit 280 million yuan last year, and is expected to reach 1 billion yuan this year.

"Our development is closely related to the prefecture's development and benefits from the many good policies and services to promote foreign trade," he said.

At the Kashgar Comprehensive Bonded Zone, trucks loaded with engineering machinery, electronic equipment, new energy vehicles, and daily necessities are lined up for customs clearance.

Wei Gongzhe, who is in charge of Kashgar Hongyu Hengtong International Freight Forwarding, said since March the company's exports of secondhand NEVs have surged.

From January to October, the company exported about 1,500 cars with a turnover of $30 million. The vehicles were mainly sent through Irkeshtam and Turgart, two land ports between China and Kyrgyzstan.

"It takes about five days for our vehicles to reach Bishkek, capital of Kyrgyzstan, and they will be sold out in three days, so cash flows quickly and we can purchase new vehicles soon," he said.

The company's cars are sent to a car wholesaler in Bishkek where clients from neighboring countries such as Tajikistan and Uzbekistan can purchase them directly.

The company mainly exports secondhand NEVs made in China such as Geely and Chang'an. The most popular ones sell for 150,000 to 300,000 yuan, according to Wei.

"The BRI has helped Chinese brands go global. More foreign customers favor Chinese brands that have a high performance-price ratio compared with Japanese, South Korean or other brands. They also look good and are well-appointed," he said.