Saudi Arabia opens new air route, with three ports in China among them!

The Saudi Ports Authority, also known as Mawani, announced the addition of CBS shipping services through Chinese shipping companies. This service connects Jeddah Islamic Port with ports in Tianjin, Qingdao, Shanghai, and Guangzhou in China, as well as Damietta Port in Egypt. It operates regularly every week and can accommodate 4000 standard containers. Intended to enhance Saudi Arabia's position in the maritime connectivity index and improve the operation of its ports

Jeddah Islamic Port covers an area of 12.5 square kilometers and is an important logistics and commercial center along the Red Sea coast. It has existed since 620 AD and has a history of over 1300 years, making it one of the oldest ports in the Middle East. There are 62 berths, including dedicated terminals such as crude oil terminal, container terminal, bulk cargo terminal, automobile machinery terminal, and live animal terminal, as well as warehouses and a 3 million square meter open-air cargo yard. There are 157 routes leading to various parts of the world, and 24 foreign shipping companies have offices here. We have modern pilotage and loading and unloading equipment, including two container loading and unloading stations, a comprehensive logistics village for warehousing and transit, two general cargo terminals, two ship repair and maintenance terminals, and a series of sea service berths.

In 2022, the bilateral trade volume between China and Saudi Arabia reached 116.04 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 33.1%. Among them, China exported 37.99 billion US dollars to Saudi Arabia, a year-on-year increase of 25.7%, while importing 78.05 billion US dollars from Saudi Arabia, a year-on-year increase of as high as 37%.

After entering 2023, although affected by some economic factors, bilateral trade still maintains a certain scale. According to data, the bilateral trade volume between China and Saudi Arabia from January to June 2023 was 55.26 billion US dollars, a year-on-year decrease of 0.4%. Among them, China's exports were 21.43 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 25.3%, while imports were 33.83 billion US dollars, a year-on-year decrease of 11.9%.

The opening of new shipping services has further developed Saudi Arabia's logistics industry, while Chinese goods can enter the Saudi and Middle Eastern markets more conveniently, shortening transportation time and costs, and improving trade efficiency. This will help promote trade between the two countries and regions, creating more business opportunities for both sides' enterprises.