Kingston Jamaica, August 13, 2006....Montego Bay officials are now finalising plans to transform the city into a major trading post for Chinese-manufactured goods, according to Mayor Noel Donaldson.

An arm of China's world famous trading centre Yiwu City is to be set up in the St James capital under the name Yiwu Western Regional Trade Centre.

"This will be the first time that they will be allowing the use of the Yiwu name outside of China," boasts Donaldson, who said he signed the Memorandum of Understanding, which permits the establishment of this trade centre, early last month during a visit to China.

Donaldson had led a seven-member delegation to China on an invitation from the Zhejiang Foreign Affairs Department.
"There is no set deadline for the establishment of the centre," Donaldson told the Sunday Observer. "What we are now looking at is the logistics of setting it up."

Permission to establish this trade centre in the second city is a direct spin- off from diplomatic arrangements between the twin cities of Hangzhou and Montego Bay and the Province of Zhejiang and St James which have shared close relationships for the past six years

Since returning from their two-week visit to China, Donaldson said Clinton Chin, chairman of the Chinese Twinning Commission, which overseas relations between Zhejiang Province and St James, has been in discussions with Chinese manufacturers who trade their goods in Yiwu
"We are not sure what the initial financial outlay will be, as discussions with Chinese manufacturers are still ongoing," said Donaldson. "The scope of what we will eventually establish here is dependent on the outcome of those discussions."

The mayor said he foresees that the centre will start small and expand later. However, whatever the scope of the initial operations, Donaldson said it will mean "a significant investment for the city of Montego Bay".

While in China, Donaldson and his delegation, including Jamaica's Ambassador to China Wayne McCook, met with the vice-governor of Zhejiang, Zhong Shan; officials from the Zhejiang Provincial Tourism Bureau, China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and Zhejiang Provincial Ocean and Fisheries Bureau.

Yiwu has earned a reputation as a world famous commodities trade centre where Chinese retailers buy commodities for resale in other parts of China and where people from all over the world purchase goods to sell overseas.

Donaldson said the Yiwu-Montego Bay trading centre will be built and operated by the Twinning Commission and will serve as a window for buyers in Jamaica, as well as those from the Caribbean, North America, Central and South America for Chinese-made products.


Source: Sunday Observer