China approves Russia's Vladivostok as cross-border transit port for Jilin Province' trade shipments

China approves Vladivostok port in Russia's Far East as cross-border transit port for "domestic trade shipments" in Northeast China's Jilin Province. The port will provide Jilin and Heilong Province with more convenient access to sea port service, experts said.

The General Administration of Customs (GAC) approved Vladivostok to a list of cross-border transit ports for "domestic goods" shipped from Jilin Province, effective from June 1, according to a notice issued on the agency's website.

The move is aimed at implementing the national plan to revitalize Northeast China's industrial base and facilitate the cross-border transport of China-made goods with the use of overseas ports, the GAC said.

It means that goods shipped from Jilin to the destinations in China can go through Vladivostok, instead of being routed through ports in Dalian, Northeast China's Liaoning province, experts said.

Liang Haiming, dean of Hainan University's Belt and Road Research Institute told the Global Times on Monday that in the past the goods from Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces needed to be transported to Dalian port, and then transferred to Shanghai, Guangzhou and other parts of the country, adding to shipping costs.

With the opening of the port, it will not only reduce the shipping cost but also attract more investment and business to Northeastern China in the future, which could act as a prelude to the take-off of local economy, Liang noted.

Chen Jia, an independent global strategy analyst told the Global Times on Monday that he expected that several new low-cost domestic and foreign trade channels would be built in the region.

Cooperation in transportation would lay a solid foundation for China and Russia to expand trade, investment and launching mega projects, experts said.

With the opening of Vladivostok port, China and Russia can engage in more cooperation in port construction and logistics, further enhancing the economic vitality of northeastern China and development in the Russian Far East, Song Kui, head of the Contemporary China-Russia Regional Economy Research Institute, told the Global Times on Monday.

Bilateral trade between China and Russia stood at $73.15 billion over the first four months of 2023, surging 41.3 percent year-on-year.