In the first quarter of this year, the total value of imported and exported goods in Gui'an New Area of Southwest China's Guizhou province reached 3.45 billion yuan ($474 million), a year-on-year increase of 52 percent.

Last year, total foreign trade in the area reached 10.79 billion yuan, accounting for 14.2 percent of the provincial total. The actual use of foreign capital increased 88 percent year-on-year.

The Gui'an Free Trade Zone in Gui'an New Area is a quintessential example the new area's open economic development.

In 2023, the zone became the first national-level open innovation platform in the province, with both foreign trade value and total industrial output value exceeding 10 billion yuan.

In the first quarter of this year, the zone's open economy achieved a total industrial output value of 3.57 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 38.9 percent.

Moving forward, Gui'an will focus on market demand in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Central Asia, mobilizing companies to participate in key domestic and international trade fairs such as the China Import and Export Fair while strengthening economic and trade exchanges and cooperation with countries in Africa and other regions.