Illustration: Tang Tengfei/GT

As the Spring Festival approaches, the bustling Shenzhen Huaqiangbei - the city's storied electronics bazaar - has seen a surge in domestic and international shoppers stocking up on "tech-themed New Year goods." Sales of consumer electronics, smart devices and artificial intelligence (AI) wearables have risen by around 30 percent compared with normal levels, according to a report released on Wednesday by Shenzhen Fabu, the city's official government WeChat account.

In Huaqiangbei, often referred to as "No.1 Electronic Commercial Street in China," AI glasses, drones, translation devices, smart earphones, portable cameras and electronic guitars have all become popular choices. What draws consumers most in this wave of "tech New Year shopping" is the combination of a comprehensive product range and cutting-edge technologies, offering shoppers both breadth of choice and rapid access to the latest innovations.

The Huaqiangbei tech New Year trend not only reflects China's ongoing consumption upgrade, marked by increasingly personalized and quality-driven demand for innovative electronic products, but also highlights the rapid iteration of China's electronics innovation chain. Together, these forces are steadily strengthening the sector's appeal to overseas consumers and global market participants.

The latest consumer boom in Huaqiangbei shows that "tech-themed New Year goods" have moved from niche offerings to mainstream choices for Spring Festival spending. Behind this shift lies Chinese consumers' growing acceptance of advanced technologies, as well as their rising purchasing power and willingness to integrate smart devices into everyday life and festive scenarios.

For overseas brands, China's expanding appetite for "tech New Year goods" represents a tangible market opportunity. Many foreign technology brands already enjoy strong recognition among Chinese consumers, built on reputations for advanced engineering, innovative design and differentiated user experiences. As traditional holiday consumption increasingly intersects with digital lifestyles, the Spring Festival market is opening new space for these brands to engage Chinese consumers in more meaningful ways.

That said, tapping into China's "tech New Year" consumption dividend requires more than simply exporting products. Success increasingly depends on aligning offerings with local consumer preferences, usage scenarios and the cultural characteristics of the holiday season. Products that integrate practical functions with social, travel or family-oriented use cases while remaining price-competitive are more likely to gain traction in a market where domestic brands are evolving rapidly.

A concrete example cited by Shenzhen Fabu illustrates this shift. One local consumer was reported to be trying out an intelligent translation earphone capable of supporting up to 95 languages, underscoring a clear move away from basic functionality toward high-performance, scenario-based and globally oriented products. Such expectations reflect Chinese consumers' growing willingness to pay for technologies that deliver precision, convenience and real-world usability. In these segments, foreign brands need to strengthen both innovation capabilities and cost controls to remain competitive against fast-rising domestic players.

The boom in tech-themed New Year shopping has also drawn a growing number of foreign consumers to Huaqiangbei. Official data shows that the area records an average daily footfall of about 750,000 people on normal days, with foreign buyers exceeding 7,000, according to Shenzhen Fabu. These indicators point not only to robust consumer demand, but also to the high-speed iteration of China's electronics innovation ecosystem and its expanding attraction for global buyers.

At the heart of this dynamism is Huaqiangbei's uniquely dense industrial ecosystem. Home to more than 110,000 business entities, the area serves as a global hub for hard-tech innovation. Within a radius of 1 square kilometer, it hosts about 1,350 design firms, 3,200 research and development companies, 1,260 prototyping and testing businesses, and 3,480 mass-production suppliers, according to CCTV News. This concentration enables an unparalleled pace of execution from design in the morning and prototyping in the afternoon to mass production the next day and overseas shipment within a week.

Despite covering just 1.45 square kilometers, Huaqiangbei's commercial district encompasses 35 specialized markets and generates more than 480 billion yuan ($69.17 billion) in annual transactions. During peak periods, a single booth can record daily fund flows reaching several million yuan. Over time, more than 100 listed companies and some 200 well-known brands have emerged from this marketplace, expanding from local experimentation to global distribution.

The sustained purchasing boom and the highly concentrated innovation ecosystem illustrate how Huaqiangbei functions not merely as a trading venue, but as a real-time engine of product iteration and commercialization. As consumption upgrades and industrial innovation reinforce each other, Huaqiangbei offers a vivid snapshot of China's evolving role - not only as a major demand center, but also as a source of fast-moving, globally competitive consumer technologies.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn