The 26th China Yiwu International Commodities (Standard) Fair kicked off on Oct 21 in the county level city of Yiwu – in East China's Zhejiang province – and wound up on Oct 25, according to reports in the local media.

To boost business opportunities for commodity brokers during the COVID-19 pandemic, the women's federation of Lishui city in Zhejiang organized for 12 broking firms to participate in the fair and local officials said they received orders worth 6.58 million yuan ($980,198).

Affected by the novel coronavirus pandemic, foreign trade orders decreased significantly for commodity brokers in Lishui this year.

Officials said they are responding to the challenge by adjusting the distribution of products to expand domestic sales.

The Lishui Chenyi Bamboo Co Ltd, for instance, is developing products that suit the local market. In the first two days of attending the Yiwu commodities fair, the company wrote up 18 orders worth 390,000 yuan.

Chen Jianmin, vice chairman of the Lishui Women's Federation, who accompanied the participants to the Yiwu Fair, said that the federation was helping brokers deal with the adverse impact of the pandemic through training, live-streaming sessions and consultations.