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The New Silk Road: The Arab World Rediscovers China

In: The New Silk Road

Author

Listed:
  • Ben Simpfendorfer

Abstract

Yiwu is a small city by Chinese standards. It has fewer than a million people and lies in the shadow of its wealthy neighbors, Shanghai and Wenzhou, to its north. But Yiwu is special. It claims the world’s largest wholesale market for consumer goods and is a Mecca for foreign traders. I had heard about the market from a Syrian trader, having asked him if there were many Arab traders in the city. He laughed and replied, “Not many Arab traders. All Arab traders are in Yiwu.” Intrigued, I decided to find out for myself. It was winter when I arrived and the city was gripped by a chill wind. I hustled out of the small airport into the warmth of a taxi. We sped along a newly built freeway to the city’s outskirts. From the outside, the exhibition hall looks like a large American mall. But, from the inside, it looks like a riotous collision of every retail shop, city market, and roadside stall in the world.

Suggested Citation

  • Ben Simpfendorfer, 2009. "The New Silk Road: The Arab World Rediscovers China," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: The New Silk Road, chapter 0, pages 7-27, Palgrave Macmillan.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palchp:978-0-230-23365-2_2
    DOI: 10.1057/9780230233652_2
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