A bonded warehouse of C.H. Robinson is put into use in Waigaoqiao Bonded Area of Shanghai Free Trade Zone, Pudong New Area, Shanghai. [Photo/pdtimes.com.cn]

The international logistics industry in Pudong New Area, Shanghai, is getting off to a flying start.

C.H. Robinson, a world leading third party logistics and supply chain management provider recently announced that its bonded warehouse located in the Waigaoqiao Bonded Area of Shanghai Free Trade Zone (FTZ) has been officially put into operation.

Covering 6,000 square meters, the warehouse provides a wide range of services for goods imported into China, including bonded storage, inventory operation, labeling, sorting, repackaging and door-to-door distribution services.

It also provides customers a wealth of value-added services, including but not limited to code spraying and quality inspection. For imported fruit and medicines, the warehouse is equipped with a storage area at a constant temperature of 18-25 C to meet the different needs of high-end products and consumers.

The successful hosting of the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) demonstrated China's determination to further open up its markets to the outside world. As one of the exhibitors of the first CIIE, C.H. Robinson has witnessed an expansion of its business in China.

"There will be growing demand in the import business in China as the country is actively promoting economic transformation, shifting from manufacturing to expanding domestic demand," said Lin Weizhi, general manager of logistics and transport for Robinson Global Logistics in Asia.

He added that in the case of labeling, international clients are paying more attention to the standardization of imported labels because of the increased demand in China's import market.

The increased investment of international logistics companies can also be attributed to the segregative management of imported goods in Shanghai FTZ.

C.H. Robinson's new bonded warehouse will allow the storage of bonded and non-bonded goods at the same time to make it an integrated logistics service platform for free transfer of international and domestic goods, according to Lin.

Established in 1905, C.H. Robinson is one of the world's largest third party logistics providers, with 124,000 customers through a network of offices in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. In recent years, China has become Robinson's largest market in Asia, and its performance in China is second only to its domestic market in North America.

Aside from C.H. Robinson, other globally known logistics operations have expanded their presence in China. FedEx Express, a subsidiary of US-based FedEx Corp, launched an international express and cargo hub at Shanghai Pudong International Airport which was put into use in 2018.