Smart ports help China consolidate its booming foreign trade

TIANJIN | Xinhua |  Automated container cranes and driverless transport vehicles are busy unloading and carrying containers at Tianjin Port in Tianjin Municipality, north China.

Smart port construction, which incorporates technologies such as 5G, AI, autonomous driving, and cloud computing, has completely transformed Tianjin Port. The port now stands as the world’s first intelligent zero-carbon terminal.

The smart terminal increases the operating efficiency of a single gantry crane by more than 40 percent and reduces labor costs by 60 percent.

In recent years, China has been vigorously developing smart transport and logistics as it pushes to build world-class smart and green ports.

In addition to Tianjin Port, Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, the world’s busiest port in terms of cargo throughput, has also ridden the wave of intelligent port construction.

“About 90 percent of China’s foreign trade is shipped by sea. The development of smart ports will enhance operational efficiency and significantly contribute to the growth of China’s foreign trade,” said Lin Yikun, an official from the China Communications and Transportation Association.

As the world’s largest trader of goods, China’s foreign trade reached a new high in the first half of this year, providing more momentum for economic recovery, official data showed Friday.

The trade volume of goods expanded 6.1 percent year on year to 21.17 trillion yuan (about 2.97 trillion U.S. dollars) in the January-June period, according to the General Administration of Customs.

“Maritime shipping is crucial to the world economy as 85 percent of all global trade is seaborne, and China plays an important role in this,” said Steve Gordon, global head of Clarkson Research Services Ltd., a shipping research institution, during the four-day Tianjin International Shipping Industry Expo 2024, which opened on Wednesday.

“China remains shipping’s biggest single market. In many areas of the maritime economy, China is incredibly important and has taken on market-leading positions globally,” Gordon added.

The transformation of ports across the country also offers a glimpse into the vibrancy of China’s shipping industry. Official data shows the tonnage of the ship fleet owned by Chinese shipowners has reached 249.2 million gross tonnes, making it the world’s largest shipowner country in terms of gross tonnage.

Moreover, China has eight of the world’s top 10 busiest ports in terms of cargo throughput and seven of the world’s top 10 ports in terms of container throughput.

“In recent years, global shipping industry has encountered unprecedented challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic tested the fabric of the global supply chain, causing widespread disruptions,” said Joseph Edward Kramek, president of the World Shipping Council.

“Red Sea threats and disruptions in the Panama Canal have added complexity to our operations, yet these events have also driven us to develop more robust and flexible solutions,” Kramek noted.

Through technological innovation, enhanced transportation efficiency, and increased global cooperation, China’s shipping industry has played a vital role in ensuring the security, stability and smooth flow of the international logistics supply chain and promoting global economic growth amidst uncertainty.

“China’s shipping industry is changing very fast and embracing the new technologies related to decarbonization and digitalization. That’s really impressive,” Jan Van der Borght, port representative of the Antwerp-Bruges Port Authority, told Xinhua.

Additionally, Chinese shipping and logistics enterprises are also actively promoting cross-border cooperation.

Cainiao, China’s e-commerce heavyweight Alibaba’s logistics arm, has established a global smart logistics network with end-to-end capabilities. It operates across some 200 countries and regions.

“The global economy relies on the seamless movement of goods across oceans, and it is our responsibility to ensure that this continues efficiently and sustainably,” Kramek noted.

“We like to work together with our Chinese friends and partners to exchange ideas. Cooperation, transparency and continuous dialogue are of paramount importance if we are to face the current challenges together,” said Van der Borght.

(Video reporters: Li Shuai, Hao Jie, Hu Zhenze; Video editors: Zhang Li, Yin Le)■