From January to July, 2019, Yunnan registered import and export value of 125.83 billion yuan (about US$18.51 billion), a year-on-year increase of 17.9 percent. Yunnan's foreign trade is characterized by close links with the countries along the Belt and Road, as well as rapid growth in featured areas and increasingly greater trade facilitation.
On March 6, a train bound for Central Europe loaded with metal scaffolds departed from Kunming. Twenty-six days later, the scaffolds, which had been produced in southwest China's Yunnan province, arrived at a Belgian factory as scheduled.
In 2015, in order to serve the Belt and Road Initiative, Yunnan Intercontinental Train Logistics Co Ltd incorporated and went into operation, operating railway shipments between Yunnan and Europe. Over the past four years, the company has successively put into operation trains that connect China with Europe, Vietnam and Singapore, achieving cross-border, multimodal transport. In 2018, the company cumulatively completed international freight transport of 37,810.79 tons, an 89.56 percent increase over the previous year.
The company epitomizes Yunnan's increasing trade cooperation with countries along the Belt and Road. In recent years, trade volume between the province and South and Southeast Asian countries has also been on the rise. As of July, the trade volume between Yunnan and ASEAN nations reached 63.01 billion yuan (about US$8.98billion), an increase of 20 percent.
Agricultural products highlights in foreign trade At the first Thai Fruit Festival, held recently in Kunming, mangosteen, durian and green pomelo from Thailand were especially popular. These fruits have been transported to China via Mohan, a major port on the China-Laos border in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan. In the first half of this year, Thai fruits entering China via Mohan almost doubled in both amount and value.
The popularity of Thai fruits reflects a new trend in China's foreign trade. As China's consumer market evolves, shopper demand for imported vegetables, fruits and other agricultural products has been on the rise. Due to its unique geographic location, Yunnan has become a gateway for agricultural products from neighbouring countries to enter China. Meanwhile, Yunnan's high-quality agricultural products are also selling well in other countries. Agricultural products are now highlights in Yunnan's foreign trade ecosystem.
More convenient customs clearances Yunnan has opened up 25 ports to the outside world. In recent years, the province has been facilitating customs clearance at these ports, laying a foundation for the growth of foreign trade.
Eighteen years ago, when Xu Guang first came to work at Ruili Customs, importers and exporters had to go through many formalities across several different departments. Today, the port of Ruili adopts paperless customs clearances by utilising advanced inspection equipment and internet-based system. Now it takes less than three minutes for a truck to complete customs clearance, saving both money and time. Statistics show that imports and exports through Ruili Port have increased from 325 million yuan (about US$46.30 million) in 1995, to 69.77 billion yuan (about US$9.93 billion) in 2018.This growth has turned Ruili into the most important land port for trade between China and Myanmar.