Learn about the 4 most important Chinese manufacturing regions and what makes them different
China has been the world's factory for decades. However, what many people don't know is how organized and specific each manufacturing sector actually is.
We've created this article to help you understand which regions specialize in the products or goods you are looking for. Let's take a deep look at the top manufacturing regions across China and what they're well known for.
Northeastern China
You may already know that the northeastern area of China specializes in heavy industrial manufacturing. That means if you are a buyer, processing plant, or reseller of machined parts, you’ll find everything you need in Northeastern China. Because the region is so rich in iron, coal, and oil, these types of materials are used in manufacturing a great number of materials. The products and manufacturers in abundance here are:
Aircraft and Automotive Parts
Everyone from aircraft and automotive part wholesalers, resellers to aircraft manufacturers and maintenance companies will find good company here. Millions of aircraft and automotive parts are exported out of Northeastern China every year. This region has for decades had the infrastructure and advancing technology that continually lowers costs and improves efficiency. If anyone finds themselves looking to source parts for their business, reselling, or wholesaling, Northeastern China is the place to be.
Shipyard Equipment
The world is connected by ever-expanding shipping lanes, marine vessels, ports, shipyards, and the shipyard equipment needed to facilitate it all. When it comes to building the world's boats and ships, A shipyard is where it all happens. Northeastern China is well known for creating everything from crawler cranes, vibrating hammers, wheel loaders, excavators, dump trucks, dredge pumps, steel molds, curing materials, and pretty much everything else a shipyard needs to function like clockwork.
Steel-Intensive Products
Steel-intensive products relate to items like steel beams used in construction, prefabricated buildings, rebar, steel construction materials, and anything used in the construction of steel structures and objects. Northeastern China’s rich steel industry helps the region export millions of tons of steel around the globe every year. For that reason, it’s a well-known hub for property developers, enterprise construction groups, and anyone else searching for large quantities of steel-intensive products. Due to the region’s generally low production costs, if you can find a supplier qualified to manufacture consumer goods, you may get a lower price than you would elsewhere.
Northeastern China Has Generally Lower Production Costs
Due to the advanced manufacturing hub that Northeastern China exhibits, production costs are typically lower here than in the rest of China. While the area focuses on heavy industrial items, you may find manufacturers of consumer goods spread out far and few between. If you do find a consumer goods manufacturer suitable for your needs here, you can expect the production cost for your items to be generally lower than they would be in the rest of China. That rule also applies to both companies looking to manufacture their products in Northeastern China as well as wholesalers and retailers looking to source large quantities.
Buyer Protections Are Limited In Northeastern China
There has been a whole market to spring up consisting of agents, quality assurance specialists, and teams of outsourced providers to monitor the production and inspection of your products. This market is less defined in Northeast China and therefore things like quality control need to be very closely monitored. Before venturing out into establishing relationships with Northeastern Chinese manufacturers, you should discover if it’s feasible to maintain a foot presence in the region or work with a third-party provider to assist you.
The Pearl River Delta
The Pearl River Delta Is between Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and is known as a world-leading manufacturing hub for the consumer goods industry. The term consumer goods refer to the products you find in your local supermarket, electronics store, and generally anywhere that serves the consumer market. Because every nation on the earth has an ever-expanding consumer goods market, The Pearl River Delta has become a home to trade from around the world.
Massive Networks Of Chinese Wholesale Suppliers
If you can think of any consumer product in the world, it’s probably manufactured in the Pearl River Delta. In fact, the area has become so synonymous with supporting the global consumer goods trade that the overall region is looked at by the central government of Beijing as a fertile ground for economic experimentation. You will frequently find massive financial incentives for foreign investment, buyers, and anyone else looking to do business with Pearl River Delta manufactures. Everything from smart phones to smart watches and even smart home products can be found here. Do some research around the Pearl River Delta. If you are in search of consumer goods like electronics toys and other merchandise, get ready to find it here.
Production Costs Can Be Higher
You may have heard the term that you pay for what you get. This is very much true when considering which consumer goods manufacturer or supplier you want to work with. If you’re looking for a higher quality of product and level of customer service, then it’s important that you shop around and pay for it. If you’re just looking to save as much money as possible and produce inexpensive products, your manufacturer or supplier will do just that. Remember it’s always pay for what you get on the Pearl River Delta.
Shenzhen Is The Heart Of The Pearl River Delta
You may have heard of the Shenzhen region. This is the location where an incredible number of Chinese wholesale suppliers have established a base. Everyone from phone manufacturers, computer manufacturers to electronic part manufacturers and more have made a home here for a reason. That includes but is not limited to IBM, HP, Apple, and even Dell. The Pearl River Delta is considered to be at the top of the food chain when it comes to consumer goods manufacturing around the world. It’s no wonder why everyone from small retailers to large enterprise brands have decided to call Shenzhen home.
Are You Looking For Cutting-Edge Consumer Goods?
You’ll find that some of the world's top trade shows for everything from electronics to household consumer goods are hosted in Shenzhen. The Shenzhen Convention & Exhibition Center is a well-known hub for new tech suppliers, new manufacturers, and curious buyers to come together. A good place to understand the schedule of Shenzhen trade shows hosted at the convention center is this link here. Take your time to browse through the upcoming conventions to hopefully find one that’s convenient for you. It will help bring you close face-to-face access with everyone from consumer good suppliers to manufacturers, shipping agents, and anyone else in the business.
Yangtze River Delta
The Yangtze River Delta is known to local Chinese citizens as their own regional manufacturing hub. When it comes to producing consumer goods, electronics, heavy machinery, and other products needed to run the country, the Yangtze River Delta region does the job. Located around the east coast of Shanghai means that the Yangtze River Delta region is in close proximity to everything from a burgeoning financial sector, massive ports and economic regions with incredibly favorable rules and regulations. While the area is open for business to the rest of the world, you typically find Chinese buyers working with Chinese suppliers and manufacturers in the Yangtze River Delta region. Let’s explain why.
The Yangtze River Delta Is Known For Low-Cost Production
As with anything else in life, the cost is directly proportional to quality. If your goal is to produce high-quality consumer goods that are aligned with international import standards, then you may want to look towards the Pearl River Delta instead. The Yangtze River Delta, on the other hand, is the perfect place to manufacture low-cost items like promotional materials, books, calendars, and objects that don’t have any sophisticated function. This will ensure you are not disappointed with the end result of sourcing low-cost sophisticated products that don’t function as you would expect.
Known For High Capacity & Low Quality
The region exhibits a high production capacity and therefore generally focuses on offering lower-cost points than other manufacturing hubs in China. Its production capacity is virtually the same as the Pearl River Delta. However, the Yangtze River Delta is home to suppliers that are dedicated to cranking out as high of an output as possible, at the lowest price point available. Even so, the manufacturers and suppliers are capable of helping you acquire many of the specific products, price points, and standards you are looking for.
Intellectual Protection Is Not As Enforced
Because the Yangtze River Delta is home to the domestic manufacturing hub of China, intellectual property protection stands on shaky ground here. You can expect a region like the Yangtze River Delta to take your prototype and share or reuse it. It's almost a 99.9% guarantee that if you were manufacturing a proprietary piece of electronics or equipment here, it will quickly spread to the rest of China.
Western Safety Protocols Are Not A Standard
One other additional point that needs to be stressed is the fact that Western safety protocols and international regulations are not often a priority in the Yangtze River Delta. This means if you're manufacturing a product to be sold in a highly regulated environment; it may be worth your while to venture to the Pearl River Delta to search for a manufacturer more experienced in your regulations. The last thing you want is to go through the trouble of meeting, negotiating, sourcing, and eventually ordering items that arrive not up to the standards of your local Western region.
Western China
Due to the landlocked nature of western China, its manufacturing facilities and infrastructure have developed at a slower pace the coastal areas like the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, and even Northeastern China. They have all enjoyed direct access to free trade zones, and support areas created by the central Beijing government. However, in light of the rapid advancement of the overall Chinese country, Beijing has taken steps to bring western China up to the same level as their coastal counterparts.
Attractive Opportunities For Smaller Companies and Investors
Due to the fact that the western Chinese manufacturing hubs aren’t as experienced and developed as eastern hubs, it is possible for small companies and investors to find more favorable deals to help get off the ground. When working with a team of manufacturers and suppliers as eager as you, there will be much opportunity to strike long-lasting, equitable relationships. Whether that means finding the perfect balance between high-quality and a low price point, western Chinese manufacturers will be willing to work with your strict international standards. Anything is possible. Take some time to explain your situation to a wide variety of partners, suppliers, and manufacturers to discover who best suits your needs.
Proceed With Caution
When it comes to western Chinese manufacturing, regions like Xinjiang are leading the way with extensive cotton textiles facilities. As time goes on, you can expect for western Chinese manufacturing to diversify and expand into a larger hub that can compete with coastal regions. For now, it’s important to proceed with caution when searching for manufacturing partners and suppliers to help export into international destinations. They may be less equipped with dealing with customer's requirements and consumer product standards that exist in your region.
Never forget that each region will have something special for every buyer. Here’s a list of some cities that specialize in specific products.
Electronics:
Guangdong
Pearl River delta
Yangtze River delta
Sichuan
Shaanxi Provinces
Textiles:
Zhejiang
Jiangsu
Fujian
Guangdong
Shandong Provinces
Leathers:
South-East Coastal areas
Hebei
Henan
Chongqing
Ningxia provinces
Metals:
Zhejiang
Guangdong
Jiangsu
Shandong
Hebei
Henan provinces
Glass:
Hebei
Jiangsu
Shandong
Guangdong provinces
Ceramics:
Jingdezhen
Jiangxi provinces
Furniture:
Guangdong
Hebei province
Jiangsu
Zhejiang
Shanghai
Chengdu
Beijing
Household Appliances:
Guangdong
Zhejiang
Shandong provinces
Artware & Stationery:
Zhejiang
Fujian
Guangdong
Hubei
Large Scale Printing:
Guangdong
Zhejiang
Jiangsu
Shandong
Fujian
Machinery Manufacturing:
Dongbei Area
Hunan
Hubei provinces
Petrochemicals:
Shandong
Liaoning
Guangdong
Pharmaceuticals:
Tianjin city
Xian city
Shanxi province
