NZ Guangdong Chamber Attends Yunfu RCEP Conference and Stone Technology Exhibition

Summary

The 23rd Yunfu International Stone Technology Exhibition opened on 18 October in Yuncheng, Yunfu, co-hosted by the Yunfu Municipal People's Government and the Guangdong Provincial Council for the Promotion of International Trade. Under the theme 'Smart Manufacturing in the Stone Capital, Win-Win Through Services', the event focuses on integrating advanced manufacturing with modern services and showcases the latest achievements and frontier technologies in the stone industry's smart transformation. Xu Xiaoxia, Secretary of the Yunfu Municipal Party Committee; Chen Guoqing, President of the China Stone Association; Xie Huirong, Vice President of the Guangdong Provincial Council for the Promotion of International Trade; and Kang Seok-ju, Mayor of Tongyeong, South Korea, spoke at the opening ceremony.

Xu Ningning, a senior expert on RCEP economic and trade cooperation, and Li Qingxin, Mayor of Yunfu, also attended. César Gamboa, Consul General of Chile in Guangzhou; Luo Han, Consul General of Panama in Guangzhou; and Cao Yuheng, Executive Vice President of the New Zealand Guangdong Chamber of Commerce, and Fu Weishi, General Manager, were invited to attend the conference and related events. The opening ceremony launched the 'Industrial Design into Yunfu' series of activities, released national and industry standards to the global market, unveiled new products including stone craftsmanship, prefabricated buildings, stone panels and smart equipment, and presented awards to the gold winners of the Guangdong (Yunfu) Stone Art Creative Competition and the Yunfu Stone Industrial Design Competition.

During the conference, Cao Yuheng outlined the chamber's efforts to help Yunfu's specialty products expand into overseas markets via the RCEP platform and its cooperation with the Yunan County Government of Yunfu to establish the first Guangdong county-level overseas warehouse in the South Pacific region, highlighting phased achievements in promoting exports of Yunfu SME products to the Australian and New Zealand markets. At the 'Guangdong Goods Going Global' new building materials production and sales matchmaking event, Cao Yuheng signed a cooperation agreement with the Yunfu Stone Industry Association on behalf of the New Zealand Guangdong Chamber of Commerce. Since its inception in 2000, the Yunfu Stone Exhibition has been held 22 times and is the only professional stone exhibition in Guangdong Province, attracting buyers from more than 50 countries and regions each year and ranked among Guangdong's top 100 exhibition projects.

In recent years, the New Zealand Guangdong Chamber of Commerce has attended the Yunfu Stone Exhibition annually to support the export of Yunfu's renowned stone products.

Commentary

Yunfu, known as China's stone capital, has held its international stone exhibition 23 times, attracting buyers from over 50 countries each year and serving as Guangdong's only professional stone show. The New Zealand Guangdong Chamber of Commerce has participated for many consecutive years and has facilitated the establishment of the first Guangdong county-level overseas warehouse in the South Pacific, providing a logistics fulcrum for Yunfu SMEs exporting to Australia and New Zealand. For NZ SME owners, RCEP gradually reduces tariffs on stone imports, allowing local builders and stone distributors to optimise procurement costs.

However, they should note that the smart transformation of China's stone industry is bringing product upgrades such as prefabricated buildings and smart equipment, which could change the category structure of traditional stone trade. On the other hand, Yunfu stone enterprises, leveraging overseas warehouses and local chamber cooperation, are shifting from pure export to channel expansion into local markets. NZ local building materials suppliers may face more direct competition from Chinese suppliers, especially in engineering customisation and rapid delivery.

NZ importers are advised to watch for new products and standards released at the Yunfu exhibition, use RCEP rules of origin to reduce compliance costs, and evaluate possible cooperation with Guangdong county-level overseas warehouses to shorten supply chain cycles.

Keywords: Yunfu International Stone Technology Exhibition, RCEP Industrial Cooperation Conference, New Zealand Guangdong Chamber of Commerce, Cao Yuheng, overseas warehouse, Stone Industry Association, Guangdong Goods Going Global, Yunan County

Summary in Chinese | 摘要

10月18日上午，由云浮市人民政府、广东省贸促会共同主办的第二十三届云浮国际石材科技展览会在云浮云城开幕，展会以“石都智造 服务共赢”为主题，聚焦先进制造业和现代服务业深度融合，集中展示石材行业智造转型最新成果与前沿技术。云浮市委书记徐晓霞、中国石材协会会长陈国庆、广东省贸促会副会长谢惠蓉、韩国统营市市长姜锡柱出席开幕式并致辞，RCEP经贸合作资深专家许宁宁、云浮市市长李庆新等出席。智利驻广州总领事馆总领事恺撒·甘博阿、巴拿马驻广州总领事馆总领事罗汉及新西兰粤商会常务副会长曹誉恒、总经理傅伟诗应邀出席大会和系列活动。

开幕式启动“工业设计走进云浮”系列活动，面向全球发布国家标准和行业标准，集中发布石材工艺、装配式建筑、石材板材、智能设备等系列新品，并为广东（云浮）石艺创意大赛暨云浮市石材工业设计大赛金奖获得者颁奖。大会期间，曹誉恒介绍新西兰粤商会助力云浮特色产品依托RCEP平台拓展海外市场，与云浮市郁南县政府合作推动首家广东县域海外仓成功落地南太平洋地区，推动云浮中小企业产品出口澳新市场的阶段性成果。在“广货行天下”新型建材产销对接活动中，曹誉恒代表新西兰粤商会与云浮市石材行业协会签署合作协议。

云浮石展会自2000年创办以来已成功举办22届，是广东省唯一的专业石材展会，每年吸引50多个国家和地区的采购商参展，入选广东省会展项目百强；近年来新西兰粤商会每年都出席云浮石展会，以支持云浮名优石材产品出口海外。

Commentary in Chinese | 评论

云浮作为中国石材之都，其国际石材展已举办23届，每年吸引50多个国家采购商，是广东唯一专业石材展。新西兰粤商会连续多年参会，并推动首家广东县域海外仓落地南太平洋，为云浮中小企业出口澳新提供物流支点。对NZ中小企业主而言，RCEP框架下石材进口关税逐步降低，本地建筑商和石材分销商可借此优化采购成本，但需关注中国石材行业智造转型带来的产品升级，如装配式建筑和智能设备，这可能改变传统石材贸易的品类结构。

另一方面，云浮石材企业借助海外仓和本地商会合作，正从单纯出口转向渠道下沉，NZ本地建材商可能面临更直接的中国供应商竞争，尤其在工程定制和快速交付领域。建议NZ进口商关注云浮展会上发布的新品和标准，利用RCEP原产地规则降低合规成本，同时评估与广东县域海外仓合作的可能，以缩短供应链周期。

关键词: 云浮国际石材科技展览会, RCEP产业合作大会, 新西兰粤商会, 曹誉恒, 海外仓, 石材行业协会, 广货行天下, 郁南县

Source: NZ Guangdong Chamber of Commerce