A logistics sorting hall at the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. Photo by Xinhua

The Shanghai Free Trade Zone is boosting the city’s logistics industry chain.

The FTZ has benefited logistics companies by lowering transportation and export costs in the Yangtze River Delta region. It will also allow them to offer multiple services to meet market demand, analysts said.

“Eyeing business opportunities in the pilot area, logistics companies are leaving no stone unturned as they seek to develop their businesses,” said an official from the zone.

DHL,the world’s largest logistic company, has become the first company to test the waters in the pilot area, launching its first transit air route, which provides goodstransferring services in Shanghai.

The new 3-day route from the German city of Leipzig to Tokyo will be eight hours faster than the old route via Hong Kong, said a DHL manager.

Yu Weijiao, chairman of YTO Express, was quoted by media as saying that the FTZ pilot program will surely bolster YTO’s presence in the international market. 15 to 20 percent of the firm’s income is expected to come from its international business by 2020, Yu added.

Meanwhile, Shanghai Customs has started a paperless declaration system in the FTZ to save time and costs for companies doing business there.

“We aim to explore a model that can be available to other parts of the country,” said a Customs official.

The practice, which took effect in March, allows companies to declare goods with digital copies of documents rather than declare them in person.

The Shanghai Free Trade Zone also offers opportunities for warehouse operators, analysts said.

“The demand for offices in the zone is increasing significantly, leading to a rent hike,” said Su Zhiyuan, head of Industrial Operations at DTZ China, a real-estate service company.