The Chengdu Cross-border E-commerce Public Service Platform, launched on Feb 29 in Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan province, is widely expected to help local companies explore international markets and boost both the local development and internationalization of the city's e-commerce sector, according to Li Hao, deputy director of the Chengdu Commission of Commerce.

The platform was opened roughly one month after Chengdu received approval from the State Council to set up a cross-border e-commerce experimental zone, along with another 11 cities.

It marks a new stage in the city's development of supervision and public service in e-commerce, and offers new opportunities for e-commerce companies, said Fu Yonglin, deputy mayor of Chengdu.

Xu Kai, vice president of iSoftStone, one of the developers of the platform, said: "The platform aims to provide one-stop services for companies that conduct foreign trade. The services include customs clearances, commodity inspections, tax rebates and foreign exchange settlements."

Xu said the platform also improves the management of transaction information, allowing customers to trace their orders from placement to delivery.

Chen Ming, deputy director of Chengdu Customs, said the platform also allows companies to offer a more efficient service to customers.

"Through this platform, imported items from, for example, Australia, can be delivered to customers within three days after an order is placed," he said.

Jia Bin, deputy manager of Sinotrans' southwest branch, anticipates the platform will lead to a surge in trade in Chengdu for the company.

"Our firm has engaged in cross-border e-commerce since 2014, but our trade peaked at 3 million yuan ($455,000) per month last year," he said. The platform is likely to facilitate much more trade for the company because of the excellent service it offers to both enterprises and customers, he added.

Li said the platform will accelerate the transformation and upgrading of the city's traditional businesses and drive the city's service sector in its bid to "go global".

"We will help improve local companies' capacity in product designing, manufacturing, and supply chain service to strengthen their competitiveness in global trade," he said.

Chengdu will also take full advantage of its position as a cross-border e-commerce comprehensive experimental zone to explore new ways in which inland cities can develop the cross-border e-commerce model, he added.

The city has prioritized the development of e-commerce in recent years, following changes in the global market.

Chengdu's customs authority launched a management system to handle imported express delivery items in September 2014.

In 2015, the local government implemented a number of policies to boost the development of cross-border e-commerce, in a bid to build the city into a "western gateway" for the sector between China and the rest of the world.

According to the city's commission of commerce, Chengdu will continue to offer subsidies to support the development of cross-border e-commerce.

Companies and organizations in the sector as well as another eight sectors in the city's service industry can apply for subsidies from July 1 to 15.

Cross-border e-commerce enterprises and supply chain service platforms that set up headquarters, regional operation centers or logistics distribution centers in Chengdu could receive a subsidy of up to 2 million yuan.

Companies and service providers that conduct e-commerce through Chengdu port could receive a subsidy of up to 5 million yuan.

Western logistics hub

As a mega city in western China and one of the first national e-commerce demonstration cities, Chengdu has built solid foundations in the sector.

The total transaction volume of Chengdu's e-commerce sector reached 629.8 billion yuan ($95.67 billion) in 2015, an increase of 20 percent from 2014.

Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is the busiest airport in China's western and central regions.

With 88 international air routes, the airport provides the city with a broad aviation logistics channel to develop cross-border e-commerce.

In line with China's westward opening-up strategy and the Belt and Road Initiative, Chengdu started the Chengdu-Europe Express Rail service in April 2013.

The trains running between Chengdu International Railway Port and the terminal station in Lodz, Poland, carry laptops, iPads, auto parts and home appliances to Europe, and bring back mechanical and electrical products, food and beverages to China.

Attracted by the city's status as a logistics hub for western China, a number of major Chinese large-scale e-commerce companies have established distribution centers in Chengdu.

During the 2015 "Double 11" online shopping gala sponsored by Taobao, a leading online retail portal in China, the city handled nearly 90 million packages, according to the Chengdu Commission of Commerce.

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College students from Sichuan take photos to post online to promote their e-business. Liu Chuanfu / For China Daily

(China Daily 06/01/2016 page10)