Lanzhou customs streamlines procedures, introduces automobile-moving trains

Customs in Lanzhou, the capital city of northwest China's Gansu Province, have significantly enhanced cross-border trade efficiency by streamlining customs clearance procedures and introducing the JSQ freight train, a special locomotive model dedicated to the transportation of automobiles.

Unlike traditional container trains, exported vehicles can drive directly into the JSQ carriages without the need for racks. Each carriage can accommodate 10 vehicles, leading to a 50 percent increase in overall transport capacity.

Cross-border train transit efficiency is further boosted by programs that promote faster customs clearance.

"Lanzhou Customs has established a 'green channel,' enabling export goods to be loaded onto trains in just two hours after arrival, significantly shortening the customs clearance time. Since the first JSQ train was launched in October 2024, a total of 41 JSQ trains have been dispatched, transporting 11,407 exported vehicles with a value of 1.239 billion yuan (about 170 million U.S. dollars)," said Wang Hongliang, chief of Jincheng Customs under Lanzhou Customs.

Lanzhou has also strengthened its air freight network by launching international cargo flight routes connecting the city with Moscow, Russia and Almaty, Kazakhstan.

In 2024, the cargo throughput at Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport reached 4,864.5 tons, with the total value of imports and exports amounting to 1.4 billion yuan (about 190 million U.S. dollars), marking year-on-year increases of 100 percent and 69 percent respectively.

The U.S. dollar increased in late trading on Friday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, gained 0.47 percent to 99.378 at 1900 GMT.

In late New York trading, the euro decreased to 1.1630 dollars from 1.1677 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound lost to 1.3332 dollars from 1.3405 U.S. dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 158.68 Japanese yen, higher than 158.19 Japanese yen in the previous session. The U.S. dollar increased to 0.7865 Swiss francs from 0.7834 Swiss francs, and it rose to 1.3739 Canadian dollars from 1.3724 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar climbed to 9.4374 Swedish kronor from 9.3495 Swedish kronor.