Riding the wave of an economic boom with its trading partners, in the first four months, Taizhou city in Jiangsu province saw imports and exports to countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative take off.
These hit 34.35 billion yuan ($4.74 billion), up 72.6 percent year-on-year, accounting for 59.7 percent of the city's total value of imports and exports.
Of that, exports alone to countries involved in the BRI reached 27.23 billion yuan, an increase of 76.7 percent, while imports to those countries hit 7.12 billion yuan, up 58.5 percent year-on-year.
"Private enterprises are the main force of Taizhou's imports and exports to countries involved in the BRI," said Qiao Hualin, deputy director of Taizhou Customs.
In the first four months, imports and exports by Taizhou's private companies to BRI nations came in at 19.07 billion yuan, accounting for 55.5 percent of the city's total.
Manufacturer Xinghua Zhongxing Electric Manufacturing Co Ltd is a private enterprise that produces mechanical and electrical products such as water pumps and motors. Its products are exported to Kazakhstan, the European Union and other places, involving independent brands and OEM (original equipment manufacturing) processing.
"Taizhou Customs has given us guidance on intellectual property protection, reminded us to pay attention to relevant risks, helping our products better enter countries involved in the BRI," said Jia Zhongliang, director of the company.
The company reported its exports to countries involved in the BRI soared by 274 percent from January to April.
An exterior view of Taizhou-based Xinghua Zhongxing Electric Manufacturing Co. [Photo/WeChat account: xinghuafabu]