YIWU -- A continuing series of daily foreign-language training sessions are helping local merchants bridge cultures and better connect with global customers in Yiwu of east China's Zhejiang Province, which is known as the world's largest wholesale market for small commodities.

Each morning, on the first floor of the Yiwu International Trade Market, the familiar sound of greetings in English, Arabic, Russian, and Spanish echo across the hall, not from tourists, but from local shopkeepers eager to sharpen their foreign language skills before opening for business.
Thanks to a recent wave of relaxed visa policies including 240-hour visa-free transit stays, Yiwu City has seen a sharp rise in international visitors since the end of last year. As of early May, more than 184,000 foreign entries have been recorded, up nearly 22 percent year on year.
The influx of visitors in these past months means the morning language classes are now always well attended by local businesspeople who are looking to brush up on their basic language skills to make a good impression on foreign clients.
The daily language learning program, which is free and open to all merchants, has been running for an impressive 19 years. Lessons focus on trade language and customer communication, adjusted based on input from local business owners.
To better serve a growing international clientele, Spanish and Arabic were added to this year's curriculum, joining English, Russian, and Korean.
For talented merchants like Yao Baojuan, who's already fluent in five languages, learning is a daily discipline which delivers positive results.
For many Yiwu traders, foreign languages are more than a tool, but a gateway to greater success as they hope to reach even bigger customer bases around the globe.