CHONGQING, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality is on the fast track to an inland opening-up high ground as the city steps up efforts to achieve a new round of opening at a wider scale, a higher level and in broader fields.
With an estimated 6.3 percent year-on-year GDP growth in 2019, Chongqing saw its total trade volume grow by about 10 percent annually and actual use of foreign capital exceeded 10 billion U.S. dollars last year.
The city has been working on building itself into an inland hub of international logistics and will further enhance connectivity, Tang Liangzhi, mayor of Chongqing, said in his government work report delivered Saturday at the opening meeting of the annual session of the municipal people's congress.
A total of 923 trips were made from the land-sea freight route in Chongqing last year, up 51 percent from that of 2018, Tang said in the report.
The route is part of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, a trade and logistics passage jointly built by western Chinese provincial regions and Singapore under the framework of the China-Singapore (Chongqing) Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity.
Chongqing is a center of operation for the corridor, with goods from western Chinese provinces and regions shipped to the Beibu Gulf in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region before they are transferred to other parts of the world along sea routes.
The total value of foreign trade goods transported via the route hit 520 million U.S. dollars in 2019. Cars and auto parts, architectural ceramics, chemical raw materials and products, foods and some 300 other kinds of goods were shipped to 213 ports in 88 countries and regions.
The city also witnessed 204 projects worth more than 30 billion U.S. dollars signed under the intergovernmental initiative since it was launched in November 2015, according to the government work report.
Chongqing's China-Europe freight rail services have also expanded last year with more than 1,500 trips made, and a 48-percent annual growth of both volume and value of transportation, Tang said.
He noted that the city eyes further expansion of the functions of the freight service, as well as more markets of cargo supply.
Also, Chongqing will improve its open economy and deepen international exchanges and cooperation, the mayor added.
