On October 11, Liu Nan’an, President of Yantian Port Group, attended the 2018 China International Trade Facilitation Forum and delivered a speech entitled “Establishing ‘Major Port’ System and Promoting ‘Greater Bay Area’ Construction”. The theme of this year’s forum is “Trade Facilitation—New Engine for Global Economic Development”. This forum is co-sponsored by China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and Shenzhen Municipal People's Government, and undertaken by Shenzhen Trade Promotion Committee. Leaders of national ministries and commissions from the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs, officials and experts from the World Trade Organization, well-known enterprises at home and abroad, foreign institutions in China, and more than 300 business representatives from all over the country attended the forum.

    Liu Nan’an said: “Hong Kong and Macao boast developed modern service industries, Shenzhen enjoys the reputation of ‘China’s Silicon Valley’, and the Pearl River Delta region has become one of the important ‘World Factories’. All these have laid a solid industrial foundation for the development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.” He also addressed that the port group of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area began to take shape and the container throughput of Shenzhen Port, Hong Kong Port and Guangzhou Port ranked third, fifth and seventh respectively in the world in 2017. It is foreseeable that Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will surely become an important pole in the economy of World Bay Areas.

         Liu Nan’an pointed out that although the container throughput of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area currently occupied the first place in the world, only Hong Kong ranked among the world's leading shipping centers and shipping market factors in Guangzhou and Shenzhen didn’t match their throughputs. Therefore, the Greater Bay Area needed to have more say and increase its competitiveness in the global shipping market. He said: "Based on this situation, we propose to borrow the development experience of the International Bay Areas in the construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Combining the characteristics of ports in the Greater Bay Area, we plan to establish two or three international hub ports, as well as feed ports or branch lines. We aim to create a well-arranged port group with focuses and multiple functions, boost the development of core hub ports in the Bay Area, and strengthen their advantages as world-class ports.” Meanwhile, it is necessary to strengthen the cooperation among Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, build an operational mechanism in line with international standards, and speed up the aggregation of shipping factors to form a cluster with global influence and resource allocation capabilities. The construction of eco-ports and smart port areas must be accelerated to enhance the soft power of shipping services and increase regional strength and influence in the global competition.

    Liu Nan’an also indicated that Yantian Port Group, centering on the establishment of “Major Port” system, implemented the development strategy of “transforming, upgrading, and going global” to build world-class port enterprises with considerations to both seas and rivers, reasonable layout, complete functions, complementary advantages, and high degree of modernization. There are some specific measures. First, Yantian Port Group will adapt to the trend of building big vessels and alliance between vessels in the shipping industry and upgrade port services. Second, it will respond to the national policy of supply-side structural reform and promote the integration of port resources in the east of Guangdong. Third, it will follow the trend of industrial outside moving in the Pearl River Delta, facilitate the construction of multimodal transport and inland ports, and continually expand the hinterland. Fourth, it will be active in providing services for the Belt and Road construction and steadily implement the strategy of going global. In short, Yantian Port Group will constantly promote industrial upgrading and transformation and build a world-class trade window to quicken the construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Belt and Road and contribute to the global economic development and international trade prosperity.

    This forum aims to promote a high-level and all-dimensional trade facilitation cooperation in various fields between Shenzhen and the government departments along the Belt and Road, international organizations, industry leading enterprises and key associations in the construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.