The Cixi Export Processing Zone (CEPZ) was established in June, 2005, with the approval from the State Council.

The administrative region where it is located--Cixi--has a unique location and industrial advantages. Lying in the center of the Golden Economic Shanghai-Hangzhou-Ningbo Triangle in the Yangtze River Delta, Cixi is close to the major cities in the area: 60 kilometers from Beilun Port, Ningbo to its east, 148 kilometers from Shanghai to its north and 138 kilometers from Hangzhou to its west.

Ever since the Hangzhou Bay Bridge went into operation in 2008, Cixi's integration with the Yangtze River Delta has been accelerating. Its location at the south end of the bridge has become more advantaged.

The solid foundation of Cixi's manufacturing and processing industries has made the city the world's largest production base of electric irons, plastic lighters, playing cards and health-care products. It is also the largest production base of curtain cloth in Asia and the largest production base of European style sockets, sealing members, miniature ball bearings, electronic copper strips, drinking water equipment and yarn feeders in China.

The manufacturing of small household appliances in Cixi has developed rapidly since the beginning of 2006. To date, the city has over 1,800 manufacturers of complete machines and almost 10,000 manufacturers of accessories. As a key region in the Hangzhou Bay Industrial Zone planned by Zhejiang province and the Ningbo government, Cixi is becoming a hot spot for the next round of foreign investment. In 2005, the disbursement of the foreign capital in Cixi ranked 4th in Zhejiang province.

CEPZ is located in the Cixi Economic Development Zone (CEDZ), which provides infrastructure for large-scale industrial projects. A high-grade road network, consisting of five latitudinal and seven longitudinal roads, has been built in CEDZ. Two transformer substations of 35,000 and 110,000 volts each, a thermal power station, and a sewage disposal plant have been put into operation. A combined police and fire station and a post and telecommunications office have been set up. Public transportation, sanitation services, gas storage and transportation facilities have all been put in place.

The major functions of the export processing zone can be summed up as follows: "the three focuses" (processing, the electromechanical industry and direct export of final products); attracting investment from transnational corporations; maximizing its advantages in strong industrial linkage; and promoting the transformation and upgrading of the processing trade while extending its industrial chain.