Business
Pinglu Canal to Boost China-ASEAN Trade and Economic Ties
Jonathan Choi emphasizes the significance of the newly opened Pinglu Canal in strengthening China-ASEAN trade ties, potentially reshaping logistics in Southwest China and reducing costs. It enhances regional connectivity.
Key Points
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Jonathan Choi Koon-shum highlighted the newly opened Pinglu Canal’s significance, comparing it to major global canals. It will vitalize Guangxi’s logistics, connect to the China-Europe Railway, and strengthen China-ASEAN trade. The canal reduces cargo travel by 560 km and logistics costs by 18-30%, saving 5 billion yuan annually.
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The 134.2-km Pinglu Canal, which has opened before the CAEXPO, enhances regional land-sea connectivity for ships up to 5,000 tons, benefiting the Greater Southwest region. The canal optimizes the logistics landscape, offering Hong Kong businesses enhanced investment opportunities in ASEAN through their professional and trade network strengths.
- Leaders like Vikrom Kromadit and Kao Kim Hourn commend the canal’s cost-efficiency and historic significance. This project boosts China-ASEAN trade relations, leveraging geographical proximity for deeper economic cooperation. Efficient shipping on this canal underscores China’s logistical advantage, marking a pivotal regional connectivity milestone.
The newly inaugurated Pinglu Canal, likened in its historical significance to the world-renowned Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, Suez Canal, and Panama Canal, promises to bolster China’s southern trade routes, thereby strengthening economic and commercial linkages between China and the ASEAN region. Jonathan Choi Koon-shum, a prominent Asian business leader and president of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, emphasized the canal’s pivotal role during the 23rd China-ASEAN Expo held in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China.
Spanning 134.2 kilometers, the Pinglu Canal has been designed to accommodate vessels up to 5,000 tons, significantly shortening the inland waterway distance to the sea by over 560 kilometers for cargo ships originating from China’s southwestern provinces like Chongqing, Sichuan, and Yunnan. This infrastructural advancement is expected to lower logistics costs by 18 to 30 percent annually, translating to savings exceeding 5 billion yuan ($747 million). With a fully operational canal, a major river-to-sea intermodal transport corridor will be revitalized, reinvigorating Guangxi’s logistic and industrial sectors and reshaping the transportation landscape of the broader southwestern region.
Simultaneously, the canal is anticipated to interconnect seamlessly with the China-Europe Railway Express, efficiently facilitating trade routes to Europe while enhancing economic partnerships with ASEAN. This positions the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Guangxi, and ASEAN member states for broader cooperation. Choi, also chairperson of Hong Kong’s SunWah Group, highlighted the canal’s potential to deepen industrial cooperation, particularly in agriculture and aquatic resources, leveraging Hong Kong’s strengths in professional services and global trade networks to drive mutual investment opportunities.
The Canal’s strategic importance was further echoed by business leaders like Vikrom Kromadit, CEO of Amata Corp, who remarked that the initiative exemplifies China’s proficiency in reducing logistical costs and efficiently deploying multiple transport methods, including ship, train, truck, and air freight. Additionally, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn commended the canal as a historically significant project, calling for both China and ASEAN to capitalize on this newly opened avenue for economic collaboration and trade expansion.
