Shenzhen has been included in the first batch of 20 cities tasked with piloting the country's modern commercial distribution system, according to an announcement on the official website of the Ministry of Commerce.
In early 2022, China's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, unveiled plans for establishing a modern distribution system by 2035. The plans aim to cut distribution costs and enhance distribution efficiency in six major areas including commercial distribution, logistics, and domestic and international distribution networks.
In April this year, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Commerce jointly issued a work plan about selecting cities with a sound foundation to pilot the modern commercial distribution system starting this year.
Shenzhen, with a mature commercial distribution sector, boasts more than 2.1 million wholesale and retail entities, 80,000 logistics firms, more than 40,000 export companies, and more than 4,000 supply chain companies. Included among them are well-known names such as BYD, Aisidi, Rainbow, and Comix. Four of Shenzhen's wholesale companies have seen their annual sales exceed 100 billion yuan (US$14 billion), while 32 have realized sales of over 10 billion yuan annually.
Last year, the city's retail sales reached 1.04 trillion yuan. Its foreign trade totaled 3.87 trillion yuan, with exports ranking first among Chinese cities for 31 straight years. The output of the city's transport, storage, and postal sector reached 97.984 billion yuan, and the shipping throughput of the airport reached 1.6 million tons.
Additionally, Shenzhen has established trade ties with more than 200 countries and regions around the world. The city also connects the world closely through a three-dimensional air-land-sea transport network. With a thriving e-commerce sector, Shenzhen saw its domestic online retail sales and cross-border e-commerce exceed 200 billion yuan and 300 billion yuan, respectively, last year.
The city has also signed supply agreements with 83 agricultural production bases across the country to ensure an annual supply of more than 7 million tons of food to meet residents' needs. Its waste recycling system, with an annual recycling amount of 3.9 million tons, has also been credited for its fast growth.