On the afternoon of the 10th, Zhengzhou in China's southern inland. A massive freight train, more likely to be seen near a border, stretched on endlessly. Toyota sedans and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) rolled off the head of the train in a line. New cars manufactured at Guangzhou Automobile's Guangzhou plant, the partner of Toyota's China joint venture, arrived at a "consolidation center" to be sold for China's domestic market.
This is the western operation zone of the Zhengzhou International Land Port, located southeast of the "Zhengzhou Aviation Port (航空港) Economic Zone." The Zhengzhou International Land Port is the only China–Europe freight train consolidation center in central and eastern China. It integrates railroad, customs, and bonded (保稅) functions in one place. When a cargo-laden train arrives here, customs declaration, inspection, and clearance are completed in a "one-stop" process, followed by bonded storage and transshipment all at once.
In particular, the western operation zone visited that day was built as a dedicated area for new-energy vehicles such as electric cars. It serves as a base for domestically sold vehicles produced in other regions and as an export base at the same time. BYD vehicles made at nearby plants are exported to various countries through this site, and they can be transported to Europe in 15 days via the China–Europe railway that opened on June 30 last year.
◇ Full-scale launch of multimodal transport by rail, road, and air
Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province, has emerged as a key logistics hub in China. Although it is an inland area in the Central Plains with no coastline, the integrated multimodal system of airport, rail, and road in the Zhengzhou Aviation Port Economic Zone (hereinafter the zone) has begun operating in earnest. Based on this, the zone is serving as the pilot area of the Zhengzhou–Luxembourg Silk Road.
The international road transport (TIR; Transport International Routier) system, which enables overland transport to Europe, is also a major pillar of the multimodal network. The TIR Henan Consolidation Center in the zone launched in September last year. It is China's third and the first in an inland region to receive International Road Transport Union (IRU) certification as a TIR consolidation center. As of October, 43 domestic and foreign TIR corporations had gathered at the center. Of a total of 1,118 vehicle trips, 718 were TIR.
As of July, it had formed a transport network covering 11 countries including Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan. One set of documents suffices end to end, and a single vehicle can reach the destination. It stretches north to Russia and Mongolia, west to Central Asia and Europe, and south to Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos. However, 80% of transport volume is concentrated in Russia alone, with other countries accounting for 20%.
A driver surnamed Hong with Hongyi Transport, which runs the Russia route, said, "The biggest challenge is Russia's icy and snowy roads," adding, "But the company provides pre-job training, and only after completing it and passing the test can you begin operations." The driver explained, "The navigation device issued by the company works in Russia, so there are no problems at the border." According to on-site officials, it can reach Europe in as little as 15 days. The most frequent route, Russia, takes 20 to 21 days round trip; in summer it can be as short as 14 days, and in winter it takes up to about 30 days. It is faster than sea shipping and cheaper than air freight.
Another pillar of the zone is Xinzheng International Airport. Xinzheng International Airport is the foundation of the zone's development, having opened 64 dedicated cargo routes to build a global air cargo network. Korean Air and Air Zeta, the only dedicated international cargo airline in the country, also use it. Xinzheng International Airport has a total of 57 cargo terminals and warehouses. Among them is a dedicated Apple warehouse, because Foxconn's Zhengzhou plant, the world's largest iPhone contract manufacturing base, is located in the zone. An on-site official said, "Every September to October, when a new iPhone series is released, we handle iPhones intensively."
Xinzheng International Airport has an annual handling capacity of 1.1 million tons of cargo, ranking sixth in China for cargo and mail throughput. A key advantage is the speed that enables customs clearance and departure within 24 hours. However, high-value electronic products such as phones, computers, and central processing units (CPUs) take one extra day due to security checks.
◇ Bonded zone ranked No. 1 in China for customs clearance efficiency rises as core e-commerce hub
Near the airport, the Xinzheng Comprehensive Bonded Zone links customs clearance and bonded functions for goods flown in by air. It is the first comprehensive bonded zone in central China and was approved and established in October 2010. Cumulative imports and exports in the first through third quarters this year totaled 299.76 billion yuan (about 63 trillion won), ranking second among comprehensive bonded zones nationwide. It is also cited as having the highest customs clearance efficiency in mainland China. In November, it received approval from the State Council for expansion.
Because of these features, the zone has grown into a core hub for China's cross-border e-commerce. As of last year, the zone's cross-border e-commerce recorded 166 million import and export parcels and 25.85 billion yuan (about 5 trillion won) in transaction value. Within the zone, logistics warehouses for VIP Shop, Alibaba, JD.com (京东), Douyin (抖音), and Suning (苏宁) have moved in one after another.
In particular, VIP Shop, which is popular in China for brand specials, guaranteed genuine goods, and next-day delivery service, uses this site as an import hub and a packaging and delivery center, and it is considered the largest and best bonded warehouse in China. Covering more than 6,000 square meters (about 1,815 pyeong), it is equipped with automated sorting equipment such as robotic arms and can handle up to 220,000 imported items per day. A VIP Shop bonded warehouse official said, "This is one of the most automated logistics warehouses in the country," adding, "It takes only two to three hours from the time imported goods enter the warehouse to the time they go out for delivery."