Chengdu facilitates customs clearance for athletes attending World Games

Southwest China's Chengdu City has facilitated customs clearance for the arrival of athletes and their equipment ahead of the 12th World Games.

The city experienced its largest influx of athletes on Tuesday, with over 900 athletes and staff from over 60 countries and regions arriving.

Starting from Sunday midnight, the Chengdu World Games Official Accreditation Center began full operations, providing comprehensive support including customs clearance, arrival guidance and transportation coordination.

Arrival and departure service points have been established at the Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport and Chengdu East Railway Station.

To facilitate the entry of athletes and their equipment, Chengdu Customs has set up a special coordination mechanism with customs offices in eight other cities including Beijing and Shanghai.

They have further optimized the customs clearance process, streamlining the inspection and release of materials related to the Games.

Special security measures have also been put in place for large competition equipment, such as kayaks and paddles, to ensure safe and efficient transportation and release.

"We have also equipped the customs clearance sites with multilingual real-time translation machines, improved the on-site signs, and developed category and level-based emergency plans for material customs clearance, so as to ensure the safe and smooth customs clearance of materials and personnel for the event," said Li Hongrong, a customs official from the Shuangliu International Airport.

So far, nearly 3,000 personnel associated with the Games have arrived in Chengdu.

The arrival and departure services of the Games will run until August 18, with over 5,000 Games-related personnel expected to clear customs during the period.

The Games will kick off with an opening ceremony on Thursday night in a vast urban setting that includes a grand eaves gallery, a large lake, and lush lakeside greenery, according to the organizers.

Running through August 17, the 12th World Games will showcase 255 events across 60 disciplines and 34 sports.

China's outstanding aggregate social financing -- the total amount of financing to the real economy -- reached 442.12 trillion yuan (about 63.4 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of 2025, up 8.3 percent year on year, central bank data showed on Thursday.

The country's aggregate social financing stood at 35.6 trillion yuan (about 5.1 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2025, up by 3.34 trillion yuan (about 479 billion U.S. dollars) from the year 2024, said the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank.

According to the data, the M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, increased 8.5 percent year on year to 340.29 trillion yuan (about 48.8 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of December.

In addition, outstanding yuan loans stood at 271.91 trillion yuan (about 39 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of 2025, up 6.4 percent year on year.