Guoyuan port in the Liangjiang New Area of Chongqing and the Chengdu Economic and Technological Development Zone signed a strategic collaboration contract on Sept 8, pledging to construct a dry port for the further development of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle promoted by the central government.

A dry port refers to the non-port area that has been granted the authority to offer a series of port services, such as customs declaration, customs inspection, and the issuance of bills of landing. Goods carried overseas through the dry port are entitled to relevant preferential policies.

The two sides promised to rely on the automobile business as the foundation, explore the extended functions of Yangtze River ports and easier ways to facilitate customs clearance in Chengdu and Chongqing, serve the dual circulation paradigm, and establish a new platform that boasts a highly-efficient, low-cost transportation system covering water, road, railway and air travel.

"The project will reduce the time needed to ship containers from Chengdu to Shanghai by eight days, and the goods turnover rate will be raised by 40 percent, which will in turn assist the development of the auto and logistics sectors in Chongqing and Chengdu," said Ren Yuan, deputy director of the Chongqing Office of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry.