The Canton Fair (officially the China Import and Export Fair) is organized by the Ministry of Commerce and Guangdong provincial government, run by the China Foreign Trade Centre. It's where large manufacturers and foreign trade enterprises showcase products across 16 categories in the National Pavilion's export section.

Where Canton Fair excels at large-scale manufacturers, OEM capability and bulk orders, Yiwu Market is built around small commodities, low minimum order quantities and mixing dozens of categories in one shipment. Many buyers visit both — Canton Fair to meet factories, then Yiwu to fill in smaller or more varied items.