Nantou, the China Home Appliance Brands Base. [File photo/Zhongshan Daily]

The Ministry of Commerce recently announced the 65 newly approved national foreign trade transformation and upgrading bases. Nantou Town of Zhongshan was approved as a "National Foreign Trade Transformation and Upgrading Base (Home Appliances)". 

Until date, Zhongshan has 4 national bases of this kind. The other three include the Guzhen Lighting Base, the Xiaolan Lock Base and the Shaxi Casual Clothes Base (Provincial Level).

Foreign Trade Transformation and Upgrading Bases are industrial clusters integrating production and export, which benefit from national and local support. They are also key incubators for new export competitive strengths in terms of information, marketing, brand, quality, technology, standards and services.

From January to August 2019, export value of these bases in Zhongshan accounted for 28% of the city's total export value, with an increase of 5.5% year-on-year. 

Nantou has now gathered more than 3,000 home appliances and supporting brands, including leading companies such as TCL Air Conditioner, Homa, Changhong, INSE and Candor. Homa, for example, has been China's export champion of refrigerators for 10 consecutive years.