In the city of Liuyang, central China's Hunan Province, the fireworks industry is gearing up for its most vibrant season as holidays are approaching.
The exhibition halls of those fireworks companies are crowded with merchants who come to negotiate orders, and workers in the workshop are rushing to fulfill orders. At the warehouse entrance, vehicles awaited to transport fireworks for export.
The cities of Liuyang and Liling in Hunan Province and the counties of Shangli and Wanzai in the neighboring Jiangxi Province are China's four major fireworks-producing areas.
According to Changsha Customs data, in the first 11 months of this year, Hunan exported 4.11 billion yuan (about 579.26 million U.S. dollars) of fireworks and firecrackers, accounting for 61.2 percent of the country's export value of fireworks and firecrackers.
Liuyang Yihelong Trade Co., Ltd. exports over 500,000 boxes of fireworks via various transportation methods, including sea and land routes, every year. Peng Xuejun, the company's general manager, said Liuyang's fireworks are globally renowned for their cutting-edge technology, which attracts many foreign clients.
Peng said his company's fireworks boast bright colors, diverse styles, and unwavering quality. The company can also tailor to the demands of clients from different regions.
The fireworks industry has brought wealth to Liuyang City, employing nearly 300,000 people from the entire supply chain in the city.
In a bustling plant of Liuyang Dingteng Fireworks Co., Ltd., workers were busy producing fireworks for overseas orders. The company has been exporting its products since 2004. Currently, 80 percent of its business comes from overseas markets. This year, their exports totaled over 28 million U.S. dollars.
Deng Dashu, the general manager, said the company mainly exports products to European and American markets, including Germany, France, and the United States. The company thoroughly studies foreign standards and markets and invests more in R&D and innovation, so it has won the trust of many overseas customers.
As the global demand for Liuyang's fireworks grew, trade talents flooded the industry around 2008. Many fireworks factories in Liuyang have established their own trading companies, making the fireworks exports more convenient and receiving plenty of overseas orders.
Liuyang Dingteng Fireworks Co., Ltd. received more orders for the upcoming year. Deng was delighted to observe a significant increase in orders from emerging developing countries in recent years. For example, their orders from Malaysia have seen rapid growth, and the number of orders in 2022 doubled that in 2021.
"We enjoy overseas exhibition subsidies and online promotion assistance from the local government. The customs provide us with a timeliness guarantee in customs declaration and inspection, and the process has been optimized continuously," Deng said.
Product innovation has also led to the growth of overseas markets. With the acceleration of innovation of domestic fireworks enterprises in recent years, especially the wide variety of small fireworks, China's fireworks lead the trend globally.