What are the opportunities for foreign trade in Ningbo during the BRICS New Year?

    The BRICS family welcomes new partners once again. Starting today, 9 countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Belarus have become BRICS partner countries. This is another important progress in the development process of BRICS, following the historic expansion achieved in 2023. Nine countries come from Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe, indicating that the 'Greater BRICS Cooperation' has a wider scope and stronger representativeness.
    Ningbo has always had frequent trade relations with the BRICS family. How much help does the addition of new partners bring to Ningbo?
    For Ningbo enterprises, it means a larger market and more orders.
    In recent days, the production line of Ningbo Zhuyun Home Furnishings Co., Ltd. has been bustling with activity, as workers are working hard to produce a batch of exquisite furniture to be shipped to Malaysia. Malaysia is one of our important export destinations, and our new products have received high praise in Malaysia. In the first 11 months of 2024, our export orders to Malaysia exceeded 3 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of over 90%, indicating its huge market potential. "Chen Shanjuan, the sales manager of Zhuyun Home, said that she is very optimistic about the market prospects of new partner countries.
    Ningbo Wohong Metal Co., Ltd. is also optimistic about the BRICS family market. Our cooperation with these partner countries is relatively stable. We import copper and other goods from countries such as Indonesia all year round, and the import trade volume is expected to reach 5 million yuan in 2024, "said the company leader bluntly." The expansion of BRICS membership is a huge benefit, and we can take advantage of the policy winds to achieve more cooperation
    According to statistics from Ningbo Customs, among the 9 newly added BRICS partner countries in trade cooperation, private enterprises such as Zhuyun Home Furnishings and Wohong Metal are the main force in Ningbo's import and export. In the first 11 months of 2024, private enterprises in Ningbo achieved imports and exports of 92.9 billion yuan to the 9 newly added BRICS partner countries, a year-on-year increase of 25.3%, accounting for 82.1% of Ningbo's total imports and exports to BRICS partner countries.
    For the city of Ningbo, the expanded BRICS family has richer human and natural resources, greater market and economic potential, which is conducive to achieving deeper economic and trade cooperation. In the first 11 months of 2024, Ningbo achieved a total import and export volume of 296.98 billion yuan with 9 BRICS member countries and 9 newly joined BRICS partner countries, a year-on-year increase of 9.6%; Among them, Ningbo achieved an import and export volume of 113.2 billion yuan to the 9 newly added BRICS partner countries, a year-on-year increase of 22.4%, which is 12.8 percentage points higher than the overall import and export growth rate of the BRICS family.
    The 12.8 percentage point gap precisely demonstrates the potential of the BRICS family after expansion.
    According to statistics from the Municipal Bureau of Commerce, there are over 10000 foreign trade enterprises in Ningbo that have trade relations with other BRICS member states, accounting for about 40% of the city's actual foreign trade enterprises. They have a good foundation for cooperation in sub sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing.
    This year, the number of cooperative enterprises will significantly increase, and the types of cooperation will continue to expand. What are the specific focus of efforts?
    The influence of the BRICS family in global affairs is increasing, and its contribution to global economic growth is quite high. In the manufacturing sector, Ningbo can strengthen cooperation with other BRICS countries in basic industries such as steel, chemicals, and textiles, and also try to precisely connect with emerging and green industries, such as new energy vehicles
    Mr. Xu, an industry insider, stated that judging from Ningbo's investment in other BRICS member countries, there is great potential for BRICS countries to tap into in areas such as technological innovation, education, and environmental protection industries. Cooperation in cross-border e-commerce, logistics, finance, new energy, cultural exchanges, and other fields also has great prospects.