HANGZHOU, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- The trade volume at the Yiwu market in east China's Zhejiang Province, the country's largest distribution center for small commodities, had set a new record in 2009 despite the global financial downturn, local authorities said Friday.

    The market reported a trade volume of 41.2 billion yuan (6.1 billion U.S. dollars) in the past year, indicating an annual growth of 7.8 percent, a spokesman with the Yiwu Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce said.

    By the end of 2009, the market had registered 137,000 stalls, almost 9,000 more than the previous year, the spokesman said.

    Meanwhile, 2,614 foreign businesses had opened offices in Yiwu, representing a yearly increase of 22.7 percent, he said.

    The export-oriented market had been hit hard by the global financial crisis since the second half of 2008, with the big slump of trade figures, he said.

    "To help the businesses go through the difficulties, the government had unveiled a string of polices, such as offering favorable loans," he said.

    The market began to show recovery signs in March 2009, when more than 27,000 foreign business people visited Yiwu, growing by 138 percent compared with February, he said.

    "In November alone, more than 40,000 foreign business people visited the market, rising by 20 percent year on year," he said.