Despite the adverse impact brought by the recent Covid-19 pandemic outbreaks, Yangpu Economic Development Zone — one of the eleven key industrial parks in the Hainan Free Trade Port — has recently broken two records. In October, Yangpu’s total volume in foreign trade in goods exceeded 10 billion yuan (about $1.4 billion), while actual use of foreign investment topped 308 million yuan (about $43.12 million).

Aerial photo shows the Yangpu International Container Terminal in the Yangpu Economic Development Zone, a pilot zone in the Hainan Free Trade Port, which has taken the lead in implementing a number of preferential policies. (Photo: Chen Yuancai / Hainan Daily)

Total export volume for trade in goods in Yangpu grew 36.5% to 75.81 billion yuan (about $10.61 billion) from January through October, contributing nearly 50% (the largest proportion of any area in Hainan) to the province’s total. According to local authorities, newly established foreign trade companies in Yangpu — subsidiaries established by C&D, Sinochem International, Sinopharm Healthcare, and other leading corporations — are powering the increase in foreign trade, accounting for nearly 40% of Yangpu’s total.

Meanwhile, the first ten months of 2022 saw Yangpu’s actual use of foreign investment surge 293% year on year to reach $536 million, three times the numbers in 2021. A notable increase was also seen in October, when Yangpu topped $308 million in the sector, achieving an all-time high.

The rapid increase in foreign trade and foreign investment, according to local authorities, is attributable to the implementation of several favorable policies to facilitate cross-border trade and investment in Yangpu, which have attracted investment from many countries and regions around the world. So far this year the area has welcomed more than 90 newly established foreign-invested companies from Singapore, Malaysia, Hungary, and other countries and regions in the world.

According to a representative from Yangpu’s Investment Promotion Bureau, Yangpu plans to improve the local business environment by making use of preferential policies to establish a more solid investment mechanism and offering better services to interested businesses.