Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge becomes key conduit for cross-border trade

The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge has been accelerating its development as a new economic and trade corridor in the Greater Bay Area since it started operation in 2018.

With closer integration between the bridge port, Hong Kong and Macao airports, surrounding ports and logistics parks, the bridge has become a critical conduit for cross-border trade, seamlessly facilitating the movement of goods.

Recently, a company based in Guangdong transported a batch of printers and their spare parts to Hong Kong Airport via the bridge, and then airlifted to Singapore.

In the past, the company used to ship the goods by barges to and from Hong Kong Airport, which took an average of two to three days. After the opening of the bridge's 24-hour customs clearance service, customs clearance procedures can be completed in half a day now.

"Since the bridge port can clear customs 24 hours a day, after the emergency materials we purchased from overseas arrived at Hong Kong Airport, we can receive them and put into production at the Zhuhai factory on the same day. Our turnover in 2024 increased by 10 percent year on year," said He Zuowei, customs manager of the company.

The Zhuhai Port at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge has seen over one trillion yuan (about 138 billion U.S. dollars) in total trade value, according to Gongbei Customs data.

Moreover, since the opening of the bridge, the origins and destinations of goods imported and exported through the bridge port have expanded to over 230 countries and regions worldwide, with particularly impressive performance in trade with emerging markets.

In 2024, the import and export value of goods through the bridge port to ASEAN, Latin America and Africa increased by 27.7 percent, 47.1 percent and 30.9 percent year on year respectively.

"It took four years for the total import and export value of the bridge port to increase from zero to 500 billion yuan, and two years and two months from 500 billion yuan to 1 trillion yuan. The bridge has continuously released the vitality as a major foreign trade channel," said Wang Peiyang, deputy commissioner of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Customs.  

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge becomes key conduit for cross-border trade

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday presided over a State Council executive meeting that studied work on building a unified national market and reviewed and approved a plan for the development of a modern emergency response system during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).

Noting that building a unified national market is essential to advancing high-quality development, the meeting called for deepening institutional frameworks in areas such as property rights protection, market access, fair competition, social credit and market exit mechanisms.

The meeting also urged efforts to advance high-standard connectivity of market infrastructure to facilitate smooth economic circulation and effectively reduce logistics costs across society.

Emergency management is critical to protecting people's lives and property, the meeting said. It called for accelerating the development of a modern emergency response system, deepening reform and innovation in emergency management, and improving coordinated response mechanisms.

Efforts should be made to strengthen risk prevention at the source, enhance monitoring, forecasting and early warning, and accelerate a shift in governance toward proactive prevention, according to the meeting.

A draft revision of the Law on the People's Bank of China was also discussed and approved in principle at the meeting, which decided to submit the draft to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for deliberation.

Chinese premier chairs State Council executive meeting