Data from Changsha Customs show that from January to October, the total volume of Hunan’s exported cultural products has reached 33.91 billion yuan, an increase of 40%, nearly half of which are from Changsha City.

Hunan’s cultural products are mainly exported to the United States and other places, accounting for about 60% of Hunan’s total in the same period.

Private enterprises are the main manufacturers of exported cultural products. In the first ten months, the exports of cultural products produced by private enterprises in Hunan reached 31.9 billion yuan, an increase of 39.1%, accounting for 94.1%. Hunan mainly exported toys, jewelry and holiday products and other cultural products, maintaining a significant growth.
 
Since Changsha became the first batch of national cultural export bases in 2018, Changsha’s cultural industry has been developing vigorously and the exports of cultural products have been increasing.

In the first ten months, Changsha exported 15.81 billion yuan of cultural products, up 49.8%, accounting for 46.6% of the province’s total in the same period.

It’s worth mentioning that the RCEP will become effective on January 1, 2022, and will help expand trade between Hunan and RCEP member countries, especially with Japan, which is beneficial to Hunan’s fireworks and firecrackers entering Japanese markets.

At the same time, the signing of RCEP is more conducive to promoting cooperation in intellectual property protection among countries, providing a more relaxed environment for the upgrading and innovative development of cultural products. It will contribute to the development of cultural innovation and cultural product trade in Hunan and promote the exports of cultural products.

According to Changsha Customs, now, Hunan mainly exports industrial products such as handicrafts, jewelry and toys, while books, tapes, CDs and other products reflecting cultural soft power are still exported in relatively smaller volumes.

So, it advises to build cultural product brands with Hunan characteristics, deeply dig and innovate national cultural resources and give full play to characteristic cultural products, in a bid to improve the cultural appeal and recognition, and promote the high-quality development of the trade in cultural products.