Reduced logistics costs to aid trade

SHI YU/CHINA DAILY China has unveiled a clear roadmap to drive down logistics costs, a strategic move that officials and analysts said is crucial for enhancing the competitiveness of the manufacturing industry, and strengthening the foundation of the country's real economy as a whole. China's total logistics costs accounted for 14.4 percent of its GDP last year, while the ratio in developed countries like the United States and Japan hovered around 7-8 percent. A 1 percentage point increase in the railway's share of total freight turnover can reduce the overall logistics cost-to-GDP ratio by 0.1-0.2 of a percentage point, Zhang said, adding that rail's current role in China's transportation market remains significantly underused. Zhang Shixin, deputy secretary-general of the National Development and Reform Commission, said given China's expansive geographic reach and the imbalanced allocation of its productive forces, optimizing the logistics network is essential for unlocking the full potential of the country's economic ecosystem where the location of industrial clusters is better aligned with the deployment of logistics hubs. The manufacturing industry is poised to enhance its edge through the optimization of logistics, as its logistics volume accounts for some 90 percent of China's total, Zhang said.