CRI听力: Business Opportunities in Erlianhot Attract Merchants from China and Mongolia to Settle down

 

The Inner Mongolian border city Erlianhot oversees the only train-based trade channel leading from China to Mongolia. Seventy percent of the trade volume between the two countries passes through here.

The enormous business opportunities have attracted many merchants from both countries to settle down in the trade hub.

He Fei has more.

Reporter:

Wenzhou International Shopping Center is one of 12 large markets in Erlianhot. Nearly 600 vendors sell Chinese clothes, hats, shoes and dishware to Mongolian customers.

Xue Yumei, a merchant from Eastern China's Wenzhou city, runs a 600-square-meter home appliance shop in the shopping center.

"My family has been doing business here since the city opened up in 1992. There were many Mongolian customers, so we thought it was a good bet. We started with small products such as clothes and toys. As our business has developed, we now import quality home appliances directly from manufacturers in southern China."

Xue Yumei says after building up her business in Erlianhot, the city has become her second home.

Mongolian merchant Na Ren immigrated to Erlianhot several years ago. She sells clothes imported from Guangzhou.

"Many Mongolian customers like my clothes because they think they are beautiful and good in quality. I bought a house here already. My child goes to school in this city. I think we will stay here and earn more money."

The merchants say they enjoy the favorable policies in the border city.

The city does not collect taxes from the merchants if their daily trade volume is less than 8,000 yuan or nearly 1,200 US dollars, to encourage bilateral trade. The threshold was set at just 1,000 yuan in 1996 and was increased to the current level in 2008.

Mongolian customer A Den Qi Mu Ge has come to Erlianhot to shop for more than 10 years. Today, she wants to buy a Haier LED TV set.(www.hXen.com)

"Shops in Mongolia sell Haier TV sets too, but you never know whether they are real or not. I trust shops here. The shop owners and I are friends now."

A Den Qi Mu Ge says most of her friends and relatives purchase goods in Erlianhot. If someone is going into the city, others make requests for goods.

He Fei, CRI News.