Wondrous Xinjiang: Rural livestock bazaar in Xinjiang brings fortune to locals

URUMQI, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Pervaded with an overpowering smell of animal feces, the "flocks and herds" bazaar in a small village in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region started receiving traders and buyers in the early morning.

Every Tuesday, nearly 10,000 people, some from outside Xinjiang, gather at the bazaar in Shule County of Kashgar to trade cattle and sheep. Other livestock like horses, camels and donkeys are also traded in designated areas.

"Around 4,000 cattle are sold in a day, along with deals of sheep and other stock. The trading volume on a single day is up to 80 million yuan (about 11.9 million U.S. dollars)," said Memettursun Abdurehim, a bazaar manager.

The bazaar now occupies an area of 6.3 hectares, some 20 times its original size when the business started in 2015.

In southern Xinjiang, the bazaar has gained wide fame for its diversified variety of cattle. "Some quality cattle can fetch a price up to 50,000 yuan, while a normal breed sells at around 10,000 to 20,000 yuan," Memettursun Abdurehim said.

Qasim Obul, a countryman from Akto County, came to the bazaar early in the morning. Through a five-hour screening, he spent 27,400 yuan on a Simmental cow.

Qasim Obul makes a living by farming and doing manual work while his wife feeds cattle. They earn an annual household income of over 100,000 yuan.

After the purchase, Qasim Obul spent an extra 30 yuan on a physical examination service from the livestock veterinarian station at the bazaar to make sure his new stock is already pregnant.

According to the head of the station, only healthy livestock are allowed to be traded at the bazaar. Besides setting the checkpoint at the entrance, the station also sends staff to patrol and conduct random checks.

The bazaar has also established business connections with other regions. Guo Fuqiang, 62, first came to the bazaar from central China's Hubei Province in the 1990s as a broker.

"I bring calves from Hubei here and then transport the adult cattle back to my hometown," said Guo. His family of three settled near the bazaar five years ago.

At the end of the day, fleets of trucks stuffed with stock departed from the bazaar, while nearby barbecue restaurants bustled with herders, farmers and retailers.