en.Wedoany.com Reported - As many countries around the world experience sustained high temperatures, demand for heat-relief products has surged in regions including Europe, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia. Yiwu in Zhejiang, China, a global distribution hub for small commodities, has entered its peak season for exporting such products.
At the Yiwu International Trade Market, merchant Liu Xiaoying recently received an order for folding fans from a European client. One batch, featuring the Eiffel Tower pattern, has already been shipped by air to Paris, France. Merchant Deng Aiping, who has been exporting folding fans for years, reports that 85% of her sales are overseas, with Europe accounting for about 50%—the largest market. Merchant Liu Lianhua noted that Spain and Italy are core markets, with her shop receiving four to five overseas clients daily and orders extending into the second half of the year.
At the Yiwu International Trade Market, a parasol with a built-in fan that can connect to a water bottle to spray a cooling mist has become a hot seller. Zhang Jiayuan, a merchant specializing in umbrellas, said the product was inspired by a request from a Middle Eastern client, leading her team to develop a design integrating a fan and misting function into the parasol. Handheld mini fans also continue to sell well. Merchant Yang Haichai noted that orders for fans from Europe have increased by over 10% compared to the same period last year. Merchant Zhu Haiyan introduced that portable fans combining misting and cold compress functions are this year's popular items, with some models also featuring Bluetooth speakers. For an order of 5,000 fans, the fastest turnaround from order to shipment is just 10 days. Additionally, cooling towels and cooling patches, known for being lightweight, instantly cooling when wet, and reusable, have found a market in Europe's outdoor sports sector. Merchant Li San's quick-dry cooling towels have already secured orders from buyers in Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand, and Cambodia.
Merchant Gu Huijie stated that Yiwu benefits from a complete industrial chain, allowing the entire process from deciding to produce to completing a sample to take less than 24 hours, as all necessary materials are available locally. Xu Xiaojun, Party Secretary of the Yiwu Economic and Information Technology Bureau, emphasized that the key lies in integrating trade and industry, using the market to drive manufacturing development, and continuously optimizing policies and the business environment to promote industrial structural transformation and upgrading.
In terms of flexible delivery capabilities, merchant Zhu Haiyan noted that orders with custom packaging or logos are typically delivered within 20 days. Merchant Yang Haichai said regular orders are shipped in about 10 days, while full container orders take about a month. Muzaffar, a buyer based in Yiwu, purchased over 1,000 Chinese-brand air conditioners in March this year for shipment to Central Asia.
Leveraging the advantage of Ningbo Zhoushan Port's "Sixth Port Area," Yiwu enables one-stop inland container stuffing, pickup, and document signing. Customs has implemented a "inspect before loading" clearance model, supporting flexible consolidation of cross-border parcels. In the first half of this year, the Yixin'ou China-Europe Railway Express exported over 84,000 TEUs, a year-on-year increase of 10.6%, with 27 routes reaching over 50 countries across Asia and Europe. In the first quarter of this year, Yiwu's total import and export value exceeded 200 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 25%.
From misting parasols to cooling towels, from folding fans to portable fans, Yiwu leverages its industrial chain capabilities to support rapid idea transformation, supplying seasonal products to the global market.
