Sales start as Beijing Zoo market prepares to shut down

Everything must go at Zhonghe Market in Beijing - literally.

One of the few surviving sections of the Beijing Zoo clothes market will close on Sunday, and many stall owners are offering discounts to sell off stock.

Zhonghe Market, which has operated for 18 years, will be moved to a neighboring province, according to the market's management committee, although it did not specify where.

The Beijing Zoo clothes market began in the 1980s and, over the years, swelled to some 13,000 stalls covering 300,000 square meters in 12 sections. It had a daily customer volume of over 100,000 people, according to the committee’s data.

However, the market was often blamed for causing severe traffic congestion and accused of selling low-quality goods.

So far, eight sections have been relocated, with the rest expected to be moved by the end of this year.

Beijing, as a center of politics, culture, international communication, and science and technological innovation, has been moving its wholesale markets to Shijiazhuang, Baoding and Cangzhou in Hebei since 2014.

In addition to Beijing Zoo, authorities have also announced that Tianyi Market, a massive wholesale market west of the Second Ring Road, will close on Sept 16.

Wang Keju contributed to this story.