ZCZC
BCN-11
CHINA-MARKET-ASEAN-COMMODITIES
ASEAN goods expand China market reach via rail-sea routes
NANNING, Dec. 2, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – Rail-sea intermodal transportation
has brought Southeast Asian commodities to more Chinese cities and regions
over the past year, rail and port authorities in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous
Region, a gateway to Southeast Asia, said Saturday.
Over 700 trains have plied on China-ASEAN rail-sea routes, which have been
expanded to link inland Chinese cities including Chongqing, Chengdu, Kunming,
Lanzhou and Guiyang, according to China Railway Nanning Group.
The route network also covers Singapore and other major ports in the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, said Beibu Gulf
Port Group based in Guangxi, an important transit location.
Commodities traveling on the rail-sea routes also expanded from ceramics
and sheet materials to 41 categories including powdered milk, coconut milk,
and wine, said the port group.
An important part of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor
(ILSTC), the rail-sea routes use ports in Guangxi’s Beibu Gulf to offer a
faster and cheaper freight transport option between western China and
Southeast Asia. The ILSTC was renamed from the China-Singapore Southern
Transport Corridor launched last year.
Guangxi is an important border area that connects China with ASEAN
countries and plays a key role in the construction of the Belt and Road
Initiative, proposed by China in 2013 to build trade and infrastructure
networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa based on ancient land and
maritime trade routes.
BSS/XINHUA/HR/1210