AChina-Europefreighttrainloadedwithmachinery,automobilessandautopartswaitsfordepartureatarailwaystationinChongqing,southwestChina,March7,2024.(Xinhua/HuangWei)CHONGQING,April24(Xinhua)--Chengdu,capitalofSichuanProvince,andneighboringChongqingMunicipality,bothlocatedinsouthwesternChina,areemergingasdynamicregionsleadingthewayinfurtheropeningupanddevelopmentinthecountry'swesternregions.Latestcustomsdatashowsthat,inthefirsttwomonthsofthisyear,thecombinedforeigntradeofChongqingandSichuanreached259.13billionyuan(about36.5billionU.S.dollars),markinga6.2percentincreasecomparedwiththesameperiodlastyear.SincetheimplementationofthedevelopmentplanfortheChengdu-Chongqingeconomiczonein2021,thecustomsdepartmentsofthetwocitieshavecloselycooperatedtohelpbuildahighlandforreformandopeningupintheinlandregionofChina.AccordingtotheChongqingCustoms,theseeffortshavetakeneffectandacceleratedthedevelopmentoftheeconomiczone.TherecoveryofimportsandexportsisamicrocosmoftheChengdu-Chongqingregion'scoordinatedeffortstoexpandcomprehensiveandhigh-levelopeningupinallaspects.Withapopulationofover98million,theChengdu-ChongqingeconomiczoneisanotherimportantregionaldevelopmentstrategyinChina.ItfollowssimilarinitiativesintheBeijing-Tianjin-Hebeiregion,theYangtzeRiverDelta,andtheGuangdong-HongKong-MacaoGreaterBayArea.RenownedChinesepoetLiBaioftheTangDynasty(618-907)oncewroteapoemtitledShuDaoNan,depictingtheregion'spoortransportation.ItdescribedhowdangerouslyhighandsteepthewaytoShu(SichuanBasin)wasandmoredifficultthanascendingthebluesky.However,thehinterlandhasnowbeentransformedfromaonceremoteandisolatedinlandareatoacruciallocalityalongtheBeltandRoadInitiativeandtheYangtzeEconomicBelt,becominganewhighlightofopeningupinwesternChina.In2023,theChengdu-ChongqingeconomiczoneachievedaregionalGDPofnearly8.2trillionyuan,anincreaseof6.1percentyearonyear.AnaerialdronephototakenonMarch7,2024showsaChina-Europefreighttrainloadedwithmachinery,automobilessandautopartspullingoutofarailwaystationinChongqing,southwestChina.(Xinhua/HuangWei)Intermsofrailwaydevelopment,ChongqingandChengduwereamongthefirstcitiesinChinatoofferChina-Europefreighttrainservices.AsasignificantstepinconstructingtheChengdu-Chongqingeconomiczone,thetwocitieshavecooperatedsince2021toimprovetheChina-Europefreighttrainservice.InJanuaryandFebruary,ChengduandChongqinghandledover650China-Europefreighttrains,transportingmorethan70,000TEUs(twenty-footequivalentunits)ofcargo.TheChina-Europefreighttrainserviceshandledbythetwocitiescurrentlyreach110citiesinEuropeandAsia.Therangeofgoodstransportedhasexpandedfromlaptopstoovertenthousandtypesofcommodities,includingvehiclesandparts,communicationsandmechanicalequipment,pharmaceuticals,andmedicaldevices.Tofacilitatethedevelopmentofthenewland-seatransitroutesforthewesternregion,ChongqingandChengduhavebeenmakingjointeffortsandplayingimportantrolesasalogisticsandoperationorganizationcenterandanimportantnationalcommercialandtradelogisticscenter,respectively.ChongqingLeeManPaperManufacturingLimitedusedtoimportrawmaterialsfromSoutheastAsia.Ithadlongbeentroubledbythelengthycycleofriver-seatransportation.Thankstothenewland-seatransitroutes,thecompany'slogisticschallengeshavebeeneffectivelyaddressed."Theroutesimprovetheefficiencyofthesupplychain,reducingtransportationtimebyabout15days.Thishasshortenedthecompany'sproductioncycle,significantlyincreasedoutput,andimprovedefficiency,"saidHuangZhicong,thecompany'sgeneralmanager.Meanwhile,anincreasingnumberofspecialtyproductsfromwesternChineseregions,suchasherbsfromGansuProvince,nutsfromXinjiangUygurAutonomousRegion,wolfberryandredwinefromNingxiaHuiAutonomousRegion,andteafromGuizhouProvince,cannowreachtheworldviatheroutes,withsomebecomingnewgrowthpointsforlocalforeigntrade.Inaddition,thetwolocalitiesareworkingtogethertopromotetheconstructionofaworld-classairportcluster,whichwillacceleratetheopeningofmoreinternationalpassengerandcargoairroutes.OnTuesday,athemedmeetingwasconvenedinChongqing,emphasizingthevigorouspromotionoftheconstructionoftheChengdu-ChongqingeconomiczoneasakeytasktoenhancethedevelopmentofChina'swesternregion.ThisphototakenonJune27,2022showsavehiclebeingassembledatasmartfactoryofChinesevehiclemanufacturerSeresGroupinLiangjiangNewArea,southwestChina'sChongqingMunicipality.(Xinhua/WangQuanchao)Today,anincreasingnumberofforeignenterpriseshaveidentifiedthegreatpotentialofthewesternregionsandhavebeenattractedtosettledownthere.Datashowsthatforeigndirectinvestment(FDI)inSichuanandChongqingaccountsforabout50percentofthetotalFDIinwesternChina.In2023,Chongqingestablished321newforeign-investedenterprises,anincreaseof30.49percentyearonyear,whiletheactualforeigninvestmentinSichuanroseto24.52billionyuan.Lastmonth,themultinationalenterpriseDanaher,specializinginlifesciences,diagnostics,andbiotechnology,signedastrategiccooperationagreementwithChongqingLiangjiangNewAreatojointlyestablishaninnovationcenter."Welookforwardtotheconstructionoftheinnovationcenter,buildingitintoahigh-levelprecisionmedicineandintegratedplatformforbiopharmaceuticalinnovationintheChengdu-Chongqingregion,"saidPengYang,globalvicepresidentofDanaherandpresidentofDanaherChina.SuezGroup,aglobalexpertinthewaterandwastesectors,hasinvestedover4billionyuaninChongqing.ItregardsChina'scarbon-neutralitypledgeasagreatopportunityforthecompany'sdevelopmentinthecountry.TheChengdu-ChongqingeconomiczoneisoneofthemainenginesofChina'sfutureeconomicgrowth.Thegroupisveryoptimisticaboutthegrowthprospectsofthisregion,saidSabrinaSoussan,chairwomanandCEOofSuezGroup.Editor:DisclaimerTheviewsandopinionsexpressedinthisarticlearethoseoftheauthor's,GMW.cnmakesnorepresentationsastoaccuracy,suitability,orvalidityofanyinformationonthissiteandwillnotbeliableforanyerrors,omissions,ordelaysinthisinformation.