National Business Daily:

We have noticed that, over the past year, the international shipping market has seen an increasingly fierce shortage of containers, and shipping fees have repeatedly hit new highs. What are the MOFCOM's forecasts for the international shipping market in the future? What measures will you take to address these issues in China's foreign trade logistics? Thank you.

Li Xingqian:

Thank you for your attention. At the present time, the shortage of shipping containers has become a common concern of all the Chinese foreign trade enterprises, severely restricting the development of international trade. Against the backdrop of the ongoing pandemic, China's foreign trade has actively helped other countries to combat the virus, effectively guaranteed the needs of the people, strongly supported the smooth operation of global industrial and supply chains, and greatly boosted the countries' confidence in winning the battle against the virus and helping the economy to recover. It has served as a "stabilizer" in global trade. Over the past year, the international shipping market has seen continuous tension between supply and demand with a limited carrying capacity of containers and exorbitant shipping fees. There are complains from local level about the sharp increase of the operating costs of foreign trade enterprises due to the hard-reserved shipping space and expensive shipping fees. Many of the foreign trade enterprises have reacted violently to these issues. In especial, small and medium enterprises are under extremely heavy pressure.

The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have attached great importance to solving the practical difficulties faced by foreign trade enterprises. The MOFCOM has closely followed these shipping issues with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and other relevant departments. We have made great efforts to improve the output of containers, increase carrying capacities, and strengthen supervision of prices. We have also provided guidance for the local governments to roll out relevant measures. We will further collaborate with other departments to address issues of urgent concern and help the foreign trade enterprises to overcome immediate difficulties.

We have noticed that the contradiction between supply and demand has directly affected global trade and will eventually affect the customers' interests. However, the high profit made by the shipping companies has also drawn much attention. As an open economy, we resolutely support all kinds of enterprises across the world to travel overseas while honoring credibility. Win-win cooperation for mutual benefit is the foundation of trade. We hope that shipping enterprises will focus on the long term, cherish the opportunities in Asian markets, and establish cooperation based on long-term stability and mutual benefit with Chinese foreign trade enterprises and others across the world. Through this, we can work together to overcome difficulties and further boost the international circulative economy. We appeal to business associations of all relevant fields, including the shipping market and freight forwarding, to strengthen self-regulation and urge enterprises to operate in accordance with laws and regulations. At the same time, we call for countries across the world to promote international cooperation and information sharing and make joint efforts to maintain the order of international logistics, and promote the smooth operation of international supply chains. Thank you.