article_snippet: the center of China's eastern Zhejiang Province lies Commodity City, which Richard John Seymour Richard John Seymour says is the largest small-commodity wholesale market in the world.
article_snippet: The shopper's paradise, in the city of Yiwu, covers 46 million square feet and has about 62,000 booths, with 100,000 suppliers exhibiting 400,000 kinds of products.
article_snippet: I spent a total of four days constantly walking around Yiwu and wouldn't say I got near to seeing all of the stalls.
article_snippet: There is a broad mix of people in Yiwu, buyers and sellers come from all over the world.
article_snippet: There are thousands of orders placed at Commodity City that are later sold to consumers in many different countries.
article_snippet: If there was one thing that particularly stands out, it was the scale of production in China.
article_snippet: Orders are made in Yiwu, but the factories nearby manufacture the items, so what you're seeing in the market is actually not for sale.
article_snippet: Just as the city of Yiwu is surrounded by mountains, the sellers at Commodity City are boxed-in by the sellers at Commodity City very own mountains of commodities.
article_snippet: According to China's state-run news agency Xinhua, more than 60% of the world's Christmas decorations are made in Yiwu and wholesaled at Commodity City.
article_snippet: Whether enjoying the beach, purchasing clothing or even playing games at the local fairground, consider if the "Made in China" label imprinted on those inflatable beach balls, shirt buttons, and cuddly teddy bears perhaps connects all the way to one of the Commodity City booths.
highlights_snippet: In "Yiwu Commodity City," Richard John Seymour documents the buyers and sellers that make up the wholesale market .
  