Exports, river restoration and heritage projects point to a new transformation trajectory 

The confluence of the Fenhe River and the Yellow River in Wanrong county, featuring a large expanse of wetland and improved water quality, is an epitome of Shanxi's ecological protection. CHANG QI/FOR CHINA DAILY

During the 2026 annual meetings of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, also known as the two sessions, held in early March in Beijing, China reaffirmed its commitment to high-quality development grounded in deepening reform, high-level opening-up, innovation and green transformation.

This grand gathering sent a strong signal to the world: China's economy is steadily advancing toward higher-quality development, and the country can continue to provide momentum for global economic growth and resilience.

When it comes to high-quality development, there are many typical cases worth studying across the country. Shanxi province in North China is no exception.

On March 5, when the fourth session of the 14th NPC opened, local journalists in Shanxi conducted a research tour of local enterprises to see where China's confidence in high-quality development comes from.

At Taiyuan Huaye Heavy Industry, a piping machine manufacturing company based in Xinghualing district of Taiyuan, journalists learned that this medium-sized enterprise has developed into a major exporter of piping machines in Shanxi. Its products, such as spiral pipe machines, end-facing and beveling machines, pipe hydrostatic testers, pipe conveyor systems and pipe end expanders, have been exported to more than 10 countries and regions, including Spain, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Vietnam and Kazakhstan.

Competitive player

When asked how a company located in inland China could become a competitive player in the international market, Wang Yang, board chairman of Huaye Heavy Industry, said the enterprise has focused on research and development for many years, especially in the core technologies for piping machines.

"We began exporting our machines to countries engaged in the Belt and Road Initiative in 2025, and they have been sought after in less than a year," Wang said.

He added that this reflects Huaye's growing competitiveness in the industry, especially in equipment featuring its patented technologies.

"Over the years, domestic buyers have imposed increasingly higher standards on suppliers," the chairman said. "It is only natural that we can survive in international markets if we have overcome the challenges of the domestic market."

However, the company is adopting stricter quality standards for its products to meet the requirements of demanding overseas buyers.

"We are busier as overseas deliveries increase," said a worker surnamed Qin, who is responsible for component quality monitoring. "When we raise our quality standards for exports, we also become more competitive in the domestic market."

Wang also attributed the company's growth in overseas markets to the improving business environment in Shanxi.

"We are benefiting from an improving 'soft environment', as the government is offering more preferential policies, streamlined customs procedures and other incentive measures," Wang said. "All these are making customs clearance faster, delivery smoother and settlement easier."

Better environment

In Shanxi, high-quality growth is not only about industry, but also about the environment.

One example is the Fenhe River in Taiyuan.

The Fenhe River, the second-longest river in Shanxi, flows through Taiyuan for 188 kilometers. For thousands of years, the river has irrigated the land and nurtured the people of Taiyuan.

With enhanced governance and ecological restoration, the water quality of the Taiyuan section of the Fenhe River has improved significantly, restoring much of its former beauty.

Trees and flowers have been planted in the Fenhe River scenic area along the riverbanks, and cultural attractions have been laid out. The area offers a habitat for hundreds of bird species and a destination for visitors.

Wang Xiaoyan, a resident of Taiyuan, moved to her new home in a residential community near the Fenhe River several years ago.

She has developed a habit of walking along the riverbanks in the evening. "The Fenhe River scenic area is now my favorite place to visit every day," Wang Xiaoyan said. "The fresh air, the lush vegetation and the clean water make it a real attraction."

But more than two decades ago, the Fenhe was a polluted river because of uncontrolled industrial and sewage discharges, according to Wang Xiaoyan.

Taiyuan launched a project to improve the environment of the river in 1998, and the river began to see a revival in 2000, when water from the upper reaches was continuously supplied to the watercourse in Taiyuan, according to local media reports.

Efforts have since continued in pollution control, ecological restoration and landscaping development, making it an attractive scenic belt for visitors and residents.

Balanced development

About 200 km south of Taiyuan lies Linfen. Over the years, this city has created a study-worthy case of balanced growth in the economy and the environment.

On Feb 27, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment hosted a news conference in Beijing. Li Tianwei, an official in charge of atmospheric environment, spoke about recent nationwide developments in air quality.

He specifically mentioned Linfen, noting that the city's average concentration of PM2.5 – particulate matters with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers – was 35.1 micrograms per cubic meter last year, down about 46.5 percent from 2020. He said that this was the highest rate of improvement among cities in China.

Behind this impressive progress is the local industrial transformation toward green and high-quality development.

Linfen's economy used to rely on polluting industries such as coking, ironmaking and steelmaking.

Since the beginning of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the city has launched a major campaign to upgrade these industries, involving the phasing out of outdated capacity and the promotion of super-low-emission technologies.

To date, all coke, iron and steel producers have achieved cleaner production, with emissions and discharges meeting the strictest standards in the country, according to local officials.

Li Yunfeng, secretary of the Linfen Committee of the Communist Party of China, said: "Linfen is a city totally different from the past. It now has blue skies and clear waters throughout the year."

The official said that, thanks to its constant efforts in environmental protection, Linfen is playing an increasingly important role in Shanxi's ambition to become an ecological barrier for North China and the middle reaches of the Yellow River.

Cultural industry

The cultural industry, which is undergoing modernization and globalization, is another important part of Shanxi's high-quality development.

The local cultural industry is rooted in the long history and brilliant culture of Shanxi, which is recognized as one of the cradles of Chinese civilization and boasts a wealth of cultural heritage assets.

On March 8, a dance drama titled Ten Kilometers of Tea Route was staged at the Shanxi Grand Theater in Taiyuan.

It takes the business activities of the renowned Shanxi merchants – or Jinshang merchants – as its backdrop, revealing how this group of Chinese foreign trade pioneers created one of the most brilliant chapters in China's commercial history.

Shanxi is known for the commercial legacy developed by the Jinshang merchants. It is said they dominated commercial circles in North China for about 500 years starting from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

However, many of these successful merchants usually started out as small vendors who traveled as far as Russia and other parts of Europe.

The trade in tea products was a dominant business for Jinshang merchants for centuries. In the 1700s, these merchants discovered the great potential of Chinese tea in the markets of North Asia and Eastern Europe.

They purchased tea from Fujian province and sold it to North Asia and Eastern Europe, creating a trade route of more than 10,000 km, according to historical records.

Historians have discovered that, before the 18th century, Sino-Russian trade was dominated by products such as silk and porcelain. Some believe it was the booming tea trade that ultimately led to the prosperity of Jinshang merchants.

Among the audience members at the dance drama was a Russian guest, Nikita Kobelev.

Kobelev is a senior executive of the National Drama Theatre of Russia and a renowned playwright in the country. He has long been interested in Chinese drama and once adapted Frog – a novel written by famed Chinese writer Mo Yan – into a Russian-language play.

After the show, Kobelev said he plans to introduce this drama to Russia to help Russian people become familiar with the trade history between the two countries.

In recent years, Shanxi has actively promoted the globalization of its cultural industry, including staging performances and holding cultural heritage exhibitions in foreign countries.

On Dec 11, for instance, an exhibition of Shanxi's silver artworks was launched in the Mexican National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico, with more than 140 silver artworks created during the Ming and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties on display. It was the first time cultural heritage items from Shanxi had been exhibited on a large scale in Latin America.

Hao Hong and Dong Jixuan contributed to this story.

A large number of white swans are spotted at the Wuxing Lake wetland in Yongji county during the past winter. CHENG YONGREN/FOR CHINA DAILY 

Zhangze Lake Wetland Park in Changzhi city welcomes back migratory birds in early spring. SI MIN/FOR CHINA DAILY 

Residents exercise at the Fenhe Cultural and Ecological Scenic Area in Linfen on March 11. YAN RUIPENG/FOR CHINA DAILY 

A wetland park near the Taiyuan section of the Fenhe River. WANG RUIRUI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Workers at Taiyuan Huaye Heavy Industry examine a piping machine. RUAN YANG/HAO CHENGUANG/FOR CHINA DAILY 

A cast hoisting machine built by Taiyuan Heavy Machinery Group, which is scheduled to be delivered to India. WU JIANFENG/FOR CHINA DAILY 

A hydraulic press is assembled at Yuci Hydraulic Industry. LIU YONG/FOR CHINA DAILY