Attendees of the event wear red scarves and pose for a photo on the ground floor of the Buyers Service Center in downtown Yiwu, Zhejiang province, on Feb 2. [Photo/WeChat account:yiwuwaishi]

The Yiwu municipal foreign affairs office and buyers service subsidiary of Zhejiang China Commodities City Group jointly hosted a reception at the Buyers Service Center in downtown Yiwu, Zhejiang province, on Feb 2 for expats who have decided to stay in the city during the upcoming Spring Festival holiday.

Attendees of the event included around 20 foreign merchants from 12 countries. They were invited to try their hands at writing spring couplets, making paper-cuttings for window decorations, and preparing jiaozi (dumplings), all of which are common rituals during the Lunar New Year, which falls on Feb 12 this year.

Foreign merchants try their hands at Chinese calligraphy during the event. [Photo/WeChat account:yiwuwaishi]

A foreign merchant makes jiaoxi (dumplings) with the help of a Chinese local. [Photo/ WeChat account:yiwuwaishi]

At the start of the event, Wang Liegang, vice-director of the Yiwu municipal foreign affairs office, delivered a welcome speech and sent new-year blessings to the expats. Office staff then delivered presentations on the city's epidemic control measures and holiday benefits available to expats.

Boasting the world's largest wholesale market, Yiwu is often referred to as the world's capital of small commodities. The number of foreign buyers residing in the city was around 15,000 in 2019.

Foreign merchants are pictured outside the Buyers Service Center in downtown Yiwu. The slogan on the red scroll reads "Foreign friends spend the Lunar New Year in Yiwu together".  [Photo/ WeChat account:yiwuwaishi]