Recently, the Jilin-themed interview as part of the 2025 "Vibrant China Research Tour" organized by the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee kicked off. A number of media reporters turned their focus to the Changchun Xinglong Comprehensive Bonded Zone and experienced firsthand the vigorous vitality of this open hub.

 

The Xinglong Comprehensive Bonded Zone has been described by industry insiders as an "international port" without seawater, an "international airport" without runways, and an "international market" without leaving the country. As Jilin Province's first and Changchun's only comprehensive bonded zone, since its official operation under customs closure in March 2014, it has adopted the development philosophy of taking logistics as the lead, industries as the support, and trade as the activator and initially shaped a development pattern of "one zone, one port, and one center" (Comprehensive Bonded Zone, International Land Port, and Import and Export Commodity Exhibition and Trade Center) and "three platforms, four channels, and three ports" (Inland Port Platform, International Trade Platform, and Cross-border E-commerce Comprehensive Service Platform; China-Europe Railway Express, sea-rail intermodal transport, cross-border charter flights, and international road transport under TIR; railway port, vehicle import port, and meat import port).

 

At the Changchun Xinglong Railway Port, towering cranes are operating in an orderly manner. Pointing to the "SMART" label on a container, Wang Yue, Chairman of Changchun International Land Port Development Co., Ltd., introduced that since 2016, the company has worked with CASC 9th Academy to develop an "Intelligent Container Monitoring System" with independent intellectual property rights. A smartphone-sized device can monitor the location and condition of containers in real time. Even on the vast ocean, the condition of containers can be fully grasped. The intelligently upgraded reach stackers also feature smart technology. Before lifting a container, its built-in intelligent system can automatically recognize the container number and transmit relevant data to customs, enabling intelligent supervision.

 

"Since its launch in 2015, the Changchun-Manzhouli-Europe rail route has transported over 90,000 TEUs of cargo with a total value of RMB 26 billion, connecting nearly 100 Russian stations and 30 European cities," Wang Yue added. Here, the Changchun-Manzhouli-Europe and Changchun-Hunchun-Europe rail routes operate like "two dragons", complementing each other. An increasingly robust multimodal transport corridor integrating road, air, rail, and sea continues to expand Changchun's opening-up in breadth and depth, becoming a "golden corridor" that drives regional economic growth.

 

"We are deepening our strategic cooperation with Liaoning Port Group. Once efficiency improves, the time for collection and distribution will be cut to 12 hours, achieving 'two ports functioning as one port, and "direct access to the port upon entering the area'," said Wang Yue. The quality improvement and expansion of the open platform will inject strong momentum into industrial upgrading.

 

Stepping into the 50,000-square-meter Import and Export Commodity Exhibition and Trade Center, visitors can find over 60,000 kinds of goods from nearly 60 countries and regions worldwide, including Russian flour, French wine, Belgian chocolate, and Korean cosmetics, allowing citizens to "enjoy global shopping without leaving the city". The "front shop and back warehouse" model adopted by the center enables consumers to experience products in person, order online, and receive direct delivery from bonded warehouses. In 2024, the center achieved sales of RMB 163 million and has now become a key window for citizens to "shop globally".

 

Today, the Xinglong Comprehensive Bonded Zone has become an important gateway showcasing the region's level of opening up. A series of impressive figures attest to Changchun's accelerating integration into the global economy. For example, in 2024, the comprehensive bonded zone's total import and export volume at the first line reached RMB 12.05 billion, setting a new record; its four-in-one international transport system has been designated as a national multimodal transport demonstration project; and the transport volume under TIR on the Changchun-Moscow route ranked third nationwide in 2024 and jumped to second place from January to May 2025. These achievements vividly illustrate the surging vitality of this open hub.

 

Rooted in the Changchun-Jilin-Tumen region, with outreach across Northeast Asia, Changchun is leveraging open platforms like the Xinglong Comprehensive Bonded Zone to drive the construction of a modern metropolitan area. With the market expansion initiative of "1,000 Enterprises Participating in 100 Exhibitions" in full swing and the China-Europe Railway Express and TIR road transport gaining speed, Changchun, the Spring City in Northern China, is writing a brilliant new chapter in embracing global markets.