Eying world-class aviation hubs, China puts jet thrusters on customs clearances
China is elevating plans to enhance how incoming goods pass through customs in the nation's aviation clusters, with a series of upgrades that could be a boon for traders and curb transport delays.
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Areas of 'optimisation' include air cargo clearances; faster immigration inspections; enhancements to aviation ports and public services; and the regulation of logistical costs, according to an official statement released by China Customs, the National Immigration Administration and the Civil Aviation Administration on Thursday.
For Geoffrey Kao, an executive director at Hong Kong-based Wah Ming Hong, which has distributed Swiss-made Enicar watches in China for more than 40 years, the ease of air cargo exports to the mainland is already impressive.
'It has been quite simple and takes less than 24 hours,' he said, adding that the standard of operations among mainland airports 'are not worse' than in Hong Kong, which is a global aviation hub.
But through the series of planned upgrades, the mainland wants to kick things up a notch and strengthen its global aviation standing.
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Several government departments in Beijing will work together to boost the service standards among critically important domestic transport clusters.
'I feel that China wants to keep improving to lead [its] industry standard in digitalisation,' said Kao, who suspected that China may push for paperless trade, noting that doing so would be a global first.
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