Workers operate electric forklifts to transport goods at an overseas warehouse in Morse, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany. Photo by our reporter Liu He
According to data released by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, there are over 120000 cross-border e-commerce entities in China, with over 2500 overseas warehouses and an area of over 30 million square meters. Among them, there are over 1800 overseas warehouses dedicated to serving cross-border e-commerce, with an area of over 22 million square meters. Our reporter recently visited 11 German overseas warehouses of 5 Chinese foreign trade enterprises in Dusseldorf, Duisburg and other places in Germany. These "overseas stations" are in a rapid development stage, helping foreign trade enterprises further improve their efficiency in going global and improve their service chains.
Connect points into lines, upgrade overseas warehousing services
Just after 8 o'clock in the morning, in the European warehouse of Westpost Logistics located in Morse, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany, dozens of handling robots receive instructions and pick up the goods for the day according to the optimal path set by the system. In the first half of this year, the warehouse stored a total of 2.9 million Chinese goods, including auto parts, outdoor furniture, photovoltaic products, etc.
There are over a hundred overseas warehouses in Germany, including Dusseldorf, Duisburg, and Hamburg, that handle Chinese goods and transport them to various corners of the European continent. The advantages of overseas warehouses lie in shortening the duration, saving costs, and accelerating trade turnover. According to the usual cross-border logistics method, it takes at least 5 to 10 days for the goods to be shipped from China to Germany after the customer places an order. After having an overseas warehouse, goods can be shipped directly from the overseas warehouse and arrive in major cities in Germany the next day or the next day, which is comparable to the logistics efficiency in China.
Meanwhile, overseas warehouses can help solve after-sales service problems such as returns and exchanges, further enhancing customer experience and the global competitiveness of Chinese products. For example, if customers want to return goods, they only need to return them to the overseas warehouse for allocation, greatly saving time and logistics costs. Ye Junchen, CEO of Xiyou Logistics Europe, stated that the increasing volume of foreign trade has raised higher requirements for cross-border logistics chains, and overseas warehouses have also shifted from single warehousing functions to multifunctional comprehensive services.
With the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce, more and more Chinese companies are strengthening their overseas warehouse construction and cooperation. The European warehouse of Chinese home furnishing brand Zhiou Technology is located in Duisburg Port, Germany, and it only takes 10 minutes from the port station to the warehouse. According to Wang Tong, the European Business Director of Zhiou Technology, in the first half of 2024, Zhiou Technology built three self operated overseas warehouses in Europe, with a total global self operated overseas warehouse area of 350000 square meters, driving revenue growth of over 41% year-on-year. For many Chinese companies, efficient cross-border e-commerce is the key to developing overseas business, and having their own overseas warehouses is an important step in improving e-commerce efficiency, "said Wang Tong.
Gathering chains into a network to accelerate cross-border flow of goods
Freight ships queue up to stop, trains honk and enter the freight yard, and trucks carrying containers with words such as "Hanxin Europe", "Yixin Europe", "Xi'an Port" and so on travel to Mercedes Benz... At Hamburg Port in Germany, reporters saw a busy scene.
China COSCO Shipping has innovated its logistics service model by setting up a relay warehouse of approximately 10000 square meters near the port of Hamburg for the first time, with compliant hazardous goods storage qualifications and bonded functions. It has established a transmission channel between domestic and international "dual warehouse linkage" and reduced demurrage fees by more than 90%. Our goal is to gather chains into a network, connect overseas warehouses and sea, land and air transportation chains, smooth international logistics channels, and provide a fully digital supply chain service network for the European region, "said Wang Xiaoyun, General Manager of COSCO Shipping Logistics Europe.
Intelligence and digitization are the overall development trends of international logistics transportation. Huamao International Logistics (Germany) Co., Ltd. is a subsidiary of China Logistics Group and a member of the German Freight Forwarders Association. According to Gao Xiang, the European Air Transport Capacity Director of the company, in recent years, the company has achieved intelligent and efficient management of the entire cross-border logistics chain through the introduction of intelligent freight forwarding systems in key links such as domestic collection, trunk transportation, overseas hub processing, and destination country distribution. When the goods move, the notification is automatically triggered. Customers can receive real-time information on when they will arrive in Germany and when they will be delivered
According to statistics from China Railway Group Corporation, in the first seven months of this year, a total of 11403 China Europe freight trains were operated, sending 1.226 million TEUs of goods, an increase of 12% and 11% year-on-year, respectively. As of early July, the China Europe freight train has reached 224 cities in 25 European countries, making it one of the busiest international freight routes in the world. Bernd Nohe, Director of the Department of Transportation and Logistics at the University of Duisburg Essen in Germany, believes that the China Europe freight train transportation service network basically covers the entire Eurasian continent, effectively expanding economic and trade exchanges between China and countries along the route, and accelerating cross-border flow of factor resources.
Expand business opportunities and create more collaborative opportunities
The constantly upgrading international logistics system has improved trade efficiency and deepened economic and trade cooperation among all parties.
Chinese cuisine is very distinctive, and we hope to recommend it to more foreign consumers. With overseas warehouses, we can ensure that after overseas consumers place orders, products can be directly shipped from local warehouses overseas and reach customers in the shortest possible time. "said Zimon, the marketing director of Hermann International Trading Company in Germany. In recent years, the demand for Chinese specialty food products from European users has surged, and the company has strengthened cooperation with the Chinese food industry. Through cross-border e-commerce and the coordination of overseas warehouses, hundreds of well-known brands from China, such as alcoholic beverages, convenient fast food, hot pot ingredients, and leisure snacks, have been successfully introduced to more than 20 European countries including Germany, France, and Finland.
In the city of Virich in North Rhine Westphalia, Germany, four warehouses covering an area of over 15000 square meters are almost filled with consumer electronics products from China: floor cleaning robots, electric scooters, sports watches... Aisdia has established cooperative relationships with multiple Chinese consumer electronics sub brands. The company's Chief Operating Officer Gerhard Lewis believes that the company is familiar with the local market and industry standards, and by establishing cooperative relationships with Chinese companies, it can better bring Chinese brands closer to European consumers. "German and Chinese enterprises have broad cooperation space.
The increasingly perfect overseas logistics network in China is also promoting local economic and social development. The number of Chinese companies entering Duisburg has increased from 40 10 years ago to over 120 today, covering various industries such as logistics and e-commerce. Marcus Toiber, the China Affairs Commissioner of Duisburg City Government, said that the China Europe freight train not only brings many high-quality Chinese goods, but also promotes more Chinese companies to invest and develop in Germany, creating a large number of job opportunities for Duisburg and more new development opportunities for German Chinese cooperation.
(Reported by Dusseldorf, Germany)
People's Daily (September 10, 2024, 17th edition)