Passenger trips and vehicle traffic at Hengqin Port in south China's Guangdong Province continued to climb in the first quarter of 2026, with both breaking historical records for the same period.
According to the Hengqin immigration inspection station in Zhuhai, a city that neighbors the Macao Special Administrative Region, over 9.2 million cross-border trips were made through the port during the first quarter of this year, up 31.7 percent year on year, and more than 1.08 million vehicles crossed the border via the port, marking an year-on-year increase of 46.5 percent.
China's expanding visa-free travel policies, along with measures such as a Hengqin-Macao tour group program and multiple-entry permits, have significantly facilitated cross-border travel. The demand for cross-border commuting, tourism, and study tours has been unleashed. During the New Year's Day holiday, in particular, the port's daily passenger flow exceeded 147,000, hitting a record high.
Facing surge in cross-border flow, Hengqin Port has optimized its customs clearance services. Relying on the innovative inspection model of "Cooperative Inspection and One-off Release", the clearance time for passenger vehicles has been reduced from about 8 minutes to 50 seconds, greatly improving clearance efficiency.
China's Hengqin Port crossings hit record highs in Q1 2026 as visa-free policies, new permits boost travel
China's Hengqin Port crossings hit record highs in Q1 2026 as visa-free policies, new permits boost travel
China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao outlined the key priorities of the 32nd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting, which opened on Friday in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province.
In an interview with CGTN ahead of the two-day meeting, Wang said free trade, digital cooperation and green economy are high on the agenda of the meeting.
"The key areas include advancing regional economic integration and the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific, supporting the World Trade Organization (WTO) in strengthening digital cooperation and developing green economy. At present, the international situation is marked by intertwined turbulence and chaos, with intensified geopolitical instability. The rise of unilateralism and protectionism poses serious challenges to the international economic and trade order, disrupting global and Asia-Pacific development. Against this backdrop, all parties have higher expectations for this trade ministers' meeting, hoping that it can build consensus and deliver outcomes," Wang said.
This year marks China's third time hosting the APEC meetings and the 35th anniversary of its membership.
By 2025, China had become the largest trading partner of 13 APEC economies. Trade between China and APEC economies reached 3.7 trillion U.S. dollars, accounting for 57.8 percent of China's total foreign trade.
China has signed 24 free trade agreements or economic and trade arrangements with 31 countries and regions, including 15 APEC economies. In recent years, China has also completed upgrades of free trade agreements with APEC economies such as Singapore and Peru.
The minister said that China has always been a firm supporter and an important contributor to APEC.
"We have actively shared our vast market and development opportunities with all parties. China's door to the world will only open wider and wider. Facing the common challenges, China will continue to fulfill its responsibilities as a major country, further deepen reform, expand high-standard opening-up, and continue to provide new opportunities for the Asia-Pacific region and the world with its new achievements in Chinese modernization," the minister said.
China's Commerce Minister outlines priorities for 32nd APEC trade ministers' meeting
