|
CARGO
moving between China and Vietnam once had
to go through complicated procedures and
be reloaded onto trucks from the country
before they could be carried to the destination.
But
in recent years there has developed direct
trucking between the two countries, eliminating
the need of unloading and reloading, greatly
cutting time and cost, and deepening logistics
and trade cooperation between China and
ASEAN countries, according to Xinhua reports.
Before
the direct trucking service, reloading freight
could cost a lot, said Tang Chao, a manager
from a local freight forwarder in southwestern
China's Guangxi Autonomous, which borders
Vietnam,
He
said fruit would suffer the damage done
during reloading the lost amounting to 25
per cent of the total of the cost in some
cases.
Since
February 2012, a number of direct trucking
routes were launched between China and Vietnam,
including the ones from southern China port
city Shenzhen to Vietnam's Hanoi, from Guangxi
capital Nanning to Hanoi, from Guangxi's
border city Chongzuo to Halong and from
another border city Baise to Cao Bang.
These
routes allow trucks from both of the countries
to drive directly across the border without
having to unload and reload freight at the
border checkpoint, which brings much convenience
to Sino-Vietnamese trade.
Indeed,
China is keen to proactively propel the
Sino-Vietnamese border trade activities.
For example, China Development Bank has
recently signed a contract with a government-run
investor in Guangxi to offer a CNY150 million
(US$24.69 million) loan to build a Sino-Vietnamese
border-trade and logistics facility, reported
Xinhua.
Puzhai
has been a major border trade market on
the Sino-Vietnamese border in Guangxi's
Pingxiang city. Over years of development,
Puzhai has become the largest market for
Sino-Vietnamese cross-border trade. It is
also the largest market for the fruit trade
between China and ASEAN and the largest
rosewood furniture market in southeast Asia.
As
both quantity and categories of the border
trade goods have kept increasing, the limited
area of the Puzhai border trade market restricted
by its geographical location can no longer
satisfy the rising demand. This is also
bringing inconvenience to the customs in
supervising the market.
The
planned border trade and logistics facility
will be a solution to these problems with
expanded market place and upgraded customs
and inspection processes. The facility is
also bound to further facilitate border
trade, enhance customs clearance efficiency
and become an investment attraction, said
Xinhua.
The
Puzhai market's annual trade value is CNY10
billion. It handles 500 trucks moving trade
goods every day and 800 during peak season.
Indeed,
not only can China and Vietnam take advantage
of the direct trucking routes and growing
border trade activities, other ASEAN countries
also benefit.
The
direct trucking routes have greatly driven
the Sino-ASEAN trades. In 2012, China's
trade with ASEAN grew 10.2 per cent year
on year to a new high of US$40 million,
helping China stay as the largest trade
partner of ASEAN for the fourth consecutive
year.
Li
Jie, secretary of the Guangxi Federation
of Logistics and Purchase, said that for
the next step, China and ASEAN should speed
up the building of infrastructures connecting
the two regions to deepen their logistics
cooperation.
China
Federation of Logistics and Purchase vice
chairman Cai Jin, said that China and ASEAN
should cooperate on developing more multi-modal
services and on one-stop logistics operation
service to enhance efficiency and facilitate
the economic integration of China and ASEAN.
According
to a report published by Asian Trucker magazine,
growing cross border trade will create a
boom in demand for the trucking sector in
southeast Asia, particularly, between Vietnam,
Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia and into south
west China.
"Better
road infrastructure will have the biggest
impact for the inland areas across emerging
markets in south east Asia, greater access
will accelerate progress in development
projects, attract investment and create
employment opportunities in some of the
poorer parts of the region," said the
report.
"For
trucking manufacturers the future is bright,
as cross-border road freight services are
increasingly attractive to customers because
of improved shipper transparency and security,
and the ability to offer trucking as part
of a multimodal solution or as a time-definite,
door-to-door service. The mode also offers
more flexibility than air on cut-off times
and a speed advantage compared to ocean.
As
a result, manufacturing clusters are setting
up along the highways to take advantage
of the improved road access to the growing
number of consumers in the region, boosting
trades further between China and all ASEAN
countries.
|
