CHONGQING - Major delivery company TNT launched an air cargo service between Chongqing and Belgium city Lige on Tuesday, a link that is expected to help build closer ties between the fast-growing high-tech production center in Southwest China and the important electronics consumer market of Europe.! \: q2 e$ F/ f
The direct flight will act as a rapid logistics route to deliver mainly IT products from the city to the European market.
' m( J' d# u, V+ C& T) J% S "Chongqing is developing as an important high-tech manufacturing center in western China. We are pleased to contribute to the high-tech industry's development by providing the pioneering international delivery services between Chongqing and Europe," said Michael Drake, regional managing director of TNT North Asia.
) ]3 Y+ W) ]! P' f- M6 X The central government's resolve to develop a wealthier and more prosperous western China has provided opportunities for Chongqing's development.
7 u5 l6 X5 C$ S ]3 b3 d In the first eight months of this year, exports from Chongqing rose 62.1 percent year-on-year to $4.2 billion. The city's GDP increased by 17.6 percent in the first half of 2010 from a year earlier to $54.51 billion.
7 S8 y! h2 }. x% o) ?; R "Transportation and infrastructure are the facilities most needed during Chongqing's ongoing process of industrial transformation and upgrading from traditional manufacturing to the high-tech sector," said Yang Zhiqing, an industrial analyst from Guangfa Securities.
, |/ I6 e$ U' G. {# e a The new direct flight will further highlight Chongqing's advantage in low-cost human resources compared with those of coastal cities, making it more popular in efforts to attract renowned overseas enterprises, Yang said.
5 l% a1 X# X( B, \ Improved infrastructure and upgrading in the clean and high-tech industries have already attracted big names to build their production bases in the city, analysts said.
) ~8 F" l# U8 j4 O& ] These include companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Foxconn, Cisco and Inventec. Currently, the city receives orders for 40 million notebooks each year and its production volume will rise to 80 million notebooks in three years.' x; f& N6 ~+ B4 X8 Q0 m6 G
"Chongqing doesn't hide its ambition to be the industry leader among western cities," Yang said., i/ I; z4 \. O% ?
"It has worked out a blueprint to become the nation's largest comprehensive tariff-free zone and the largest production base of electronics products in the western region," he said.
" p! i! J+ m- p- e In the past eight years, Chongqing has invested nearly 250 billion yuan ($37.52 billion) in infrastructure.2 _8 e* Q5 ^3 g! ]8 \ ~/ f B
It has set logistics facilities in sectors including its port, high-speed railway, highways and airport to ride on the next economic boom that is mainly expected to occur in the nation's western areas, analysts said.) r3 t* P: g4 n! T/ K! n: l9 r
"China is a strategically vital market for TNT globally," said Michael Drake, regional managing director of TNT North Asia.
. B& o4 M8 h; N3 p" u) O1 @# g( B5 T "By leveraging our strengths and capability in both international express and domestic road transportation services, we are in a unique market position to offer customers a combined delivery service that can meet both growing export and domestic demand across the country," he said.
; u5 U, A' B5 l! n# M The new TNT service will involve Boeing 747 aircraft for the 12-hour cargo flight, company sources said. There will be three flights each week, on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. A daily flight is expected to start by the end of this year.: I0 d9 v7 V, u% Z) q
Since September, TNT has increased its dedicated flight frequency between China and Europe to a daily service. TNT is also strengthening its leading Chinese road distribution service. |