13 projects signed at Belt & Road port co-op summit in Ningbo

A summit was held in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province, on Dec 11, to deepen the city's port cooperation with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, and build the city into an international port city.

The 2018 Belt and Road Summit for Port Cooperation, hosted by the local government, witnessed the signing of 13 high-end projects in port cooperation. 

Notably, the Ningbo Shipping Exchange signed a deal with Drewry, the world-leading international maritime research consultancy, in providing better container shipping information services, and with Freightos, a Jerusalem-based online freight platform, in sharing shipping resources for the upgrading of the modern shipping service industry. 

Other important deals include one between the city’s Westrail Supply Chain Co and Netherlands' Nunner Logistics for the providing of better international logistics services, as well as  one between Ningbo University and Liberian Registry for the joint conduction of sailor training. 

Ningbo has seen rapid growth in its port economy over the years, with its Ningbo-Zhoushan Port ranking first worldwide in cargo throughput for nine consecutive years and its total shipping capacity exceeding 10 million tons by August this year. 

It has also developed sound partnerships with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, with more than 80 container shipping routes opened between the city and these countries, and foreign trade worth 463 billion yuan ($67.4 billion) realized between them over the past five years. 

Still, challenges do exist in the city's port economy, as high-end services are less developed in its port logistics and shipping services, such as international distribution and maritime arbitration, leading to a lower level of added values. 

"The projects will help solve the predicament faced by the city in its current shipping services and strengthen the city's shipping industry," said a local official.

In addition, a shipping insurance committee, a shipping logistics training base, and an international shipping logistics alliance were also established at the summit.