In recent years, Chinese ports encounter a series of challenges such as industries in eastern China relocating to inland and foreign trade slowdown in coastal areas. In response to these challenges, Port of Shanghai implements “Yangtze River Strategy” to promote the transformation of port sector, providing efficient logistic services for cities and provinces along the Yangtze River and catalyzing industrial transition in central and western China and upgrading basin economy.

On the one hand, Chinese industries have been increasingly relocated to inland cities in recent years. As industries are relocated to central and western China, port sector needs to optimize logistic services accordingly. Port of Shanghai firstly introduces liner service widely adopted in ocean shipping to shipping industry along the Yangtze River, so as to facilitate cargo shipping from central and western China to the public sea.

On the other hand, throughput at Shanghai Port faces challenges due to industrial restructuring along the coastal areas. The implementation of “Yangtze River Strategy” helps to extend the hinterland of Shanghai to Sichuan and Yunnan. The fast growth of cities along the Yangtze River would provide sufficient cargoes for Shanghai Port. Last year, cargo throughput at Shanghai Port reached 32.53 million TEUs, including 3.87 million TEUs from Yangtze River branches.

In recent years, Port of Shanghai has invested container ports in Nanjing and Jiangyin, established port corporation groups in Wuhan and Jiujiang and four shareholding shipping companies. Based on integrated resources, Yangtze Port Logistic Company is established, expanding door-to-door services for cargo owners from sole port handling business in the past.

According to the plan, Shanghai Port will accelerate to develop new businesses such as automotive logistics, regional allocation and cold-chain storage, so as to further drive port transformation.

As pointed out by Zhen Hong, Sectary General of Shanghai International Shipping Institute, modern port is developed towards a service supply chain, namely comprehensive logistic services transferred from sole port handling in the past.