Yantai is a rather developed economic region in the north of China and is one of the exportation bases of various commodities. Up to now a complete foreign trade
system has been formed all over the city. There are more than 300 companies have been licensed to import and export commodities and over 1,000 foreign-funded enterprises have put into operation and begun to carry out import and export. As a result an omnibearing and multi-level export pattern has come into being. 17 major categories with over 600 varieties of commodities and products are sold to 110 countries and regions in the world. The annual volume of import and export in 1999 is over 3 billion U.S. dollars, including U.S.$ 1.5 billion of the exportation volume.

The fields and scales on economy and technology with foreign countries have been expanding gradually since its further opening to the outside world in 1984. All means of cooperation in current practice in the world have been started with nearly 60 countries and regions such as U.S.A., Canada, Japan, France, Germany, Hong Kong and Macao, etc. Till the end of 1999, 5455 contracts have been signed for using foreign investment. Contracted foreign investment accounts for U.S.$ 6.96 billion and 4.13 billion U.S. dollars foreign funds has been utilized. 4,333 foreign-funded enterprises have been set up, among those, 1890 ones have put into operation and most of them have got fine returns. At the same time of the policy that thousands of enterprises opening abroad is being put into effect, more attention is being paid to build the economic pattern of "Lange scale, high quality, facing to outside world". Now foreign cooperation relation with over 30 famous large firms, multinational companies and financial groups such as mitsui & co., ltd, mitsubishi, nissho iwai corporation, itochu corporation, toyota, nipponednso co., ltd, tomen corporation, daewoo, ralston-pusina international holding co., inc., the timken company, phelps dodge company, elf, total raffinage & distribution s.a., gb corp., liemhwa industrial corporation, new world infrastructure limited, bank of china group investment limited, china merchants holdings co., ltd., china resources (holdings) co., ltd.,etc.has been set up. 3928 foreign-funded enterprises have been set up, among those, 1830 ones have put into operation and most of them have got fine returns.