Courier service revenue in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region reached 6.53 billion yuan (about 980 million U.S. dollars) in the first nine months of 2026, up 11.4 percent year on year, as free shipping lowered the cost of online shopping and unleashed consumer demand across the region.
Thanks to China’s rapidly expanding high-speed logistics network, residents of Xinjiang, a vast, sparsely populated border region with difficult terrain, now have access to fast, affordable courier services, a marked improvement from just a few years ago.
In the region's capital Urumqi, a 500-mu (about 33 hectares) smart logistics park operated by JINGDONG Logistics, the logistics arm of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, runs the region's first Zhilang Goods-to-Person (GTP) System around the clock. Warehouse robots shuttle back and forth, handling up to 1 million parcels a day at peak as shipments arrive from across the country to be sorted and dispatched to cities and prefectures throughout Xinjiang.
In Kashgar, the city's first large digital integrated logistics hub has been stocked in advance with more than 600,000 small items and over 50,000 large items shipped in from other parts of China, ready for rapid delivery when orders arrive.
Previously, orders took seven to eight days to reach residents in southern Xinjiang, usually traveling thousands of kilometers from China's southeastern coastal provinces. Now, goods are dispatched from the local warehouse and delivered within one to two days, with free shipping covering all orders handled through the facility.
In the run-up to this year’s Double 11 shopping festival, the Kashgar warehouse has seen a sharp rise in daily volume, handling 45,000 orders a day.
"We use big data analysis to identify which goods are ordered most frequently, and we stock them in advance. If local users place orders before 11:00, we deliver in the afternoon; if they order before 23:00, we deliver the next morning," said Li Xuefeng, director of the Kashgar-Hotan area of JD Logistics.
Xinjiang sees surge in parcel deliveries after joining nationwide free delivery zones
The ninth China International Import Expo (CIIE) is set to feature 81 groups of cultural relics and artworks with a total value exceeding 400 million yuan (about 60 million U.S. dollars), as exhibits are transported to the National Exhibition and Convention Center for installation ahead of the expo's opening in Shanghai on November 5.
This year marks the sixth consecutive year that the CIIE has set up a dedicated cultural relics and artworks zone.
On Friday, six artworks from France and the United States were declared for release from the bonded zone.
Among the exhibits is a 1950 crocodile brooch by American jewelry designer David Webb. The golden crocodile features emerald eyes and a diamond-encrusted neck.
Another set of century-old red enamel gold boxes, includes a portable powder box, cigarette case and snuff box, will be displayed at this year's CIIE alongside the crocodile brooch and ruby earrings.
According to Shanghai Customs, as of Thursday, nine companies had declared 81 batches of cultural relics and artworks, valued at approximately 474 million yuan, for release from the bonded zone to participate in the expo. Both the quantity and diversity of the exhibits have increased significantly compared to the previous edition.
Unlike ordinary goods, these exhibits in the cultural relics and artworks zone carry high value and demand exceptional care in packaging, transit, and storage. Customs has introduced customized regulatory services to ensure their safe and smooth delivery to the exhibition hall.
"We rely on the big data platform to connect all links of cargo declaration, pre-review and verification, and support the CIIE green channel with convenient measures such as dedicated staff and posts and appointment-based customs clearance," said Wang Ou, deputy chief of the Second Bonded Supervision Section of the Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone Customs.
The ninth CIIE will be held in Shanghai from Nov 5 to 10. A total of 162 countries, regions and international organizations will take part, with 4,142 overseas companies exhibiting. The overall exhibition area for companies will exceed 370,000 square meters for the first time.
Launched in 2018 as the world's first national-level expo dedicated to imports, the CIIE was designed to expand China's opening-up and turn its vast market into a shared opportunity for the world.
Ninth CIIE expects 81 groups of cultural relics, artworks worth over 400 mln yuan
