Yiwu's ndustrial enterprises above designated size spent 5.71 billion yuan ($818.93 million) in research and development from January to November this year, a year-on-year increase of 63.5 percent, according to the local bureau of science and technology.

Yiwu Dingbang Stationery Co has benefited from continued research and development.

The company established a technical department in 2013, hiring skilled engineers and technicians and spending all profits on product research and development.

After five years, the company launched the first domestic pencil sharpener that can sharpen colored pencils, charcoal pencils, and common pencils. The price of the company's new pencil sharpener has increased by more than 30 percent.

The company currently has more than 140 technical patents. Among them, a newly developed pencil sharpener named Kulinan is priced at 1,314 yuan, making it one of the most expensive pencil sharpeners sold in China.

In recent years, Yiwu has been working to cultivate innovative subjects and improve the gradient cultivation system of small- and medium-sized technological enterprises, high-tech enterprises, technological giants, and leading technological enterprises.

This year, Yiwu identified 244 new provincial small- and medium-sized scientific and technological enterprises, bringing the total number to 1,639. The number of national high-tech enterprises has reached 380, with 82 newly listed ones.