A city alliance is established in Fangchenggang on Sept 22 to promote cold chain economy in China and Vietnam. [Photo by Zhai Liqiang/chinanews.com]

Ten cities in China and Vietnam jointly established a city alliance in Fangchenggang, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on Sept 22 to facilitate cooperation in the construction of a cold chain land-sea corridor between China and Vietnam.

The 10 cities include Fangchenggang in Guangxi, Chengdu, Panzhihua, Neijiang, Yibin, Guang'an, and Dazhou in Sichuan province, Jiangjin district in Chongqing, Guiyang in Guizhou province, and Mong Cai in Vietnam.

The city alliance was set up to build a new cold-chain land-sea channel with short time limits, excellent prices, and fast customs clearance between ASEAN and west China, bringing together cold chain resources to expand the whole chain cold chain industry, as well as to share the cold chain industry platform for cooperation, industrial interaction, and development, which will promote the quality upgrading of the cold chain market.

Fangchenggang is a gateway city connecting China and ASEAN through land and sea. It is not only the most convenient sea passage in southwest China, but also an important land-sea passage for ASEAN countries to enter the Chinese market.

Li Yanqiang, secretary of the Fangchenggang municipal CPC committee, said that Guangxi has issued measures to support the development of the cold chain economy and that the freight of cold chain goods by railway will be reduced by 43 percent soon. Li noted that Fangchenggang has ushered in a golden period to promote cross-border economic cooperation between China and Vietnam with increasingly growing economic and trade exchanges between the two sides.

Ban Zhongbai, mayor of Fangchenggang, said that the city will strive to build itself an international cold chain logistics hub along the Belt and Road, as well as an international agricultural products trade processing center between China and ASEAN.