From small roadside stalls to China's largest professional market cluster, Linyi Trade City in Shandong province, has achieved leapfrog growth during the past four decades and is poised to extend its reach across the globe.

Currently, there are 136 professional wholesale markets and 63,700 shops in the trade center, as well as more than 6 million kinds of products from 27 categories. Its trading value reached 660.48 billion yuan ($91.94 billion) in 2024 and the logistics volume amounted to nearly 1.01 trillion yuan.

To accelerate the trade center's transformation and upgrading, Linyi city authorities have introduced a package of policies and incentives, encouraging local enterprises to grow their foreign trade business and establish a presence in international markets.

Linyi enterprises attending exhibitions and trade activities overseas can get airfare subsidies or personal allowances of up to 5,000 yuan, according to a policy released in February.

The Second China (Linyi) — Kazakhstan International Commodity Exhibition, held in May in Almaty, Kazakhstan, brought together 112 enterprises from Linyi to display their flagship products in hardware, building materials, labor protection, and infant care. More than 10,000 professional buyers from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries took part.

Jiang Wei, consul general of China in Almaty, said the event not only showcased China-made products, but offered an opportunity for business people from both countries to promote exchange and supply-demand matchmaking and jointly explore the potential for cooperation.

"I am very happy to meet these accessory exhibitors during the activity and have direct engagement with them. I've already reached an agreement with a supplier," said the buyer Stas Kolesnikov from Kazakhstan.

The trade city also organized exhibitions in Turkiye, Uzbekistan and Malaysia this year.

The 2025 China (Linyi) — Turkiye Economic and Trade Cooperation Exchange Conference marks the first step of the Linyi government leading enterprises into the Turkish market and even the markets of Eastern Europe, said Luo Xiaoxiao, director of the foreign trade division of the Linyi bureau of commerce.

"We are planning more exhibitions and activities in Hungary and Russia to deepen cooperation with enterprises in Europe," she said.

The trade city has also built 59 overseas malls and warehouses so far, as well as 45 international procurement service centers and offices, as part of its efforts to raise visibility globally and develop its international trade network.

  Launched in 2023 in Yongin, the Lanhua (South Korea) Overseas Mall displays a wide range of domestic products such as household goods, pet supplies, outdoor and camping equipment, and hardware tools.

"It serves as a one-stop center for exhibitions, sales and warehousing," said a representative from Shandong Lanhua Group, one of the mall's operators.

"Beyond that, we can assist domestic firms in establishing connections with South Korean distributors, support their negotiations and offer tailored services," he added.

While expanding abroad, the trade city has been committed to attracting global buyers and investors. During the first four months of 2025, it received 13,233 overseas business visitors, generating intent transactions of 906 million yuan.

The fourth RCEP (Shandong) Import Expo, which opens on Friday, gathers a total of 333 exhibitors, including 183 companies that trade with those involved in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and 55 with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

Of the exhibition zones, eight are set up in the trade center, showcasing its hotel supplies city, international food city and other professional markets.

Strong logistics infrastructure is essential to foreign trade and urban growth.

Linyi has built a multidimensional international logistics system integrating road, rail, air, and sea freight, linking itself with nine regions such as Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia.

Currently, the city is home to 51 international road freight companies and operates nine direct international routes to 10 countries.

"Although Linyi is an inland city, we have established a maritime container depot in collaboration with Qingdao Port and Rizhao Port. Through resource integration and procedure optimization, we have helped enterprises cut logistics costs by 30 percent," said Hua Qianli, manager of Linyi Port.

Last year, the port handled 198,000 twenty-foot equivalent units of cargo, valued at 19.2 billion yuan.

Meanwhile, the city recorded 452 China-Europe Railway freight train trips to 40 cities in 12 countries, along with 480 direct flights to Seoul, transporting 2,067 metric tons of air cargo.

Local officials said that they are also advancing the construction of a modern logistics city, which will become a key driver for the trade center's transformation and upgrade.

The project's first phase has established 13 logistics parks and standard warehouses covering 1.18 million square meters. Its second-phase construction is now in full swing.

Linyi has developed more than 3,000 domestic freight routes to all county-level cities and above across the country as well as all ports and terminals.

Its widespread transportation network helps it achieve same-day delivery within 600 kilometers, next-day delivery within 800 km, and three-day delivery within 1,500 km, while offering logistics costs approximately 30 percent lower than the national average.