AS the sun sets on Urumqi, the Xinjiang Urumqi CIS market comes to life, with entrepreneurs displaying an array of Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) goods amid the hubbub of bargaining traders and browsing tourists.
However, behind the buzz looms a crisis in product supply which is overshadowing the usually cheerful countenances of the hawkers.
'Goods used to be abundant, but supply has been tight after the Lunar New Year. Sometimes there aren't enough goods available to us. I'm afraid I may not continue to be in this business [of selling CIS goods]; I won't be able to if one day the supply runs out,' said Xiaokaiti.Tuohuti an Uygur hawker who buys Kazakhstan-made binoculars from border traders.
His concern, shared by other hawkers and border traders, is only one facet of the problems plaguing Sino-CIS border trade.
Urumqi's border trade with Kazakstan, its biggest border-trading partner, has plummeted since the middle of last year as a result of changes in Kazakstan's policies on China trade, the supply of Kazakstan products, Urumqi policies, and currency exchange rates.
However, there are hints of a revival of the business which has been feeding many of Urumqi's entrepreneurs and enterprises.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992, China and Kazakstan agreed to open their border trade, and set beneficial trading terms.