(Quanzhou Station, Chinese Headline New Media — Reported by Liu Zhenzhen and Guo Bin) The 2nd “Maritime Silk Road” Overseas Chinese Investment and Trade Conference and the Quanzhou Conference on the High-quality Development of Domestic and Foreign Trade, hosted by the CPC Quanzhou Municipal Committee and Quanzhou Municipal People’s Government, kicked off on April 2. Nearly a thousand overseas Chinese entrepreneurs and Quanzhou business leaders from 79 countries and regions gathered with their global business networks and innovative industrial insights, inheriting the “Jinjiang Experience” and rekindling the prosperity of Quanzhou as a “global trade hub.”
“Nine out of ten households in Quanzhou have ties to overseas Chinese.” As a renowned hometowns of overseas Chinese in China, Quanzhou is home to more than 9.5 million overseas Chinese across over 170 countries and regions. These enterprising individuals have ventured across the world, donating and investing back into their homeland. They have contributed significantly to Quanzhou’s economic boom after the reform and opening-up, serving as a vital engine for development and a window for international exchange, leaving an indelible mark on the city’s history.
At the inaugural “Maritime Silk Road” Overseas Chinese Investment and Trade Conference, 71 projects from overseas Chinese across 13 countries and regions took root in Quanzhou, yielding fruitful results. Two years later, this year’s conference has attracted 108 projects from Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Russia, Japan, Canada, Thailand, as well as Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Quanzhou businesses abroad, with a total investment of 144.446 billion yuan. These projects include 88 investment initiatives, 10 platform-based projects, and 10 trade collaborations, covering traditional industries such as petrochemicals, equipment manufacturing, footwear and textiles, as well as modern services, biopharmaceuticals, low-altitude economy, AI manufacturing, cultural tourism and hospitality, new energy, new materials, new infrastructure, financial funds, and digital economy. It was reported that 54 projects were signed during the opening ceremony.
Notably, the 2nd “Maritime Silk Road” Overseas Chinese Investment and Trade Conference was held concurrently with the Quanzhou Conference on the High-quality Development of Domestic and Foreign Trade for the first time. The integration aims to deepen cooperation between Quanzhou and global overseas Chinese entrepreneurs and compatriots, and Quanzhou merchants outside the city through a model of “region-wide linkage, global connectivity, and full-chain services,” promoting the expansion of Quanzhou’s quality products into international markets.
With the theme of “Pooling Overseas Chinese Strength, Linking Global Opportunities, and Advancing Shared Development”, this conference strategically integrates the themes of “Maritime Silk Road overseas Chinese investment and trade” and “high-quality development of domestic and foreign trade”. Beyond the main event, more activities will be held, including the launch of the “Shijing Shizhou Banquet”, cross-border business matchmaking meeting for overseas Chinese entrepreneurs and visits to industrial belts, a global Quanzhou youth elite forum, overseas warehouse construction and crafts export matchmaking meeting, as well as industrial tours for overseas Chinese relatives, merchants, and traders across Quanzhou’s counties (cities, and districts).