China to open fourth bonded port in Hainan

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Oct. 12 – The State Council moved ahead with plans for the country’s fourth bonded port in Hainan province Xinhua reported yesterday, yet another of the steps China is taking towards establishing a free trade zone with the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN).

The Yangpu Bonded Harbor Area in the Yangpu Economic Development Zone, located near the city of Haikou and covering 9.21 square kilometers, will be completed in three stages, the first phase of which has already begun construction, said Hainan vice governor Jiang Sixian.

Construction is estimated to cost upwards of RMB50 billion and the area will host industries with a total output value of RMB100 billion, generating RMB12 billion in taxes annually by 2012. According to Jiang, the port will be transformed into a logistics center for oil, natural gas, chemical materials and paper pulp, as well as being a key processing base for chemical products in the country.

The port can house 80 berths, each of which will handle 10,000 to 300,000 tons of goods, along its 50-kilometer-long coastline and offer tax breaks on imports, and rebates on China-made commodities, while trade between companies inside the harbor area would be exempt from value added and consumption taxes, in addition to preferential policies granted to Yangpu Economic Development Zone said Li Lanxue, chief of Haikou Customs.

There are currently three bonded port areas in China: Yangshan Port of Shanghai, Dongjiang Port of Tianjin and Dayaowan Port of Dalian, Liaoning province.