Officials attend a press conference in Zhanjiang on July 16. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Zhanjiang Customs issued 12 new measures to improve the supervision and service quality in customs, vowing to maintain a steady growth in foreign trade of western Guangdong province. The new measures were unveiled at a press conference held in Zhanjiang on July 16.

Senior officials, including Chen Zhifeng, deputy commissioner of Zhanjiang Customs, Zhang Ronghui, executive vice-mayor of Zhanjiang, and Lin Xiaowei, deputy secretary–general of Zhanjiang municipal government, were present at the press conference.

Expanding multilateral cooperation in the Beibu Gulf rim is the key measure to help Zhanjiang develop into a strategic pivot city along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

Zhanjiang Customs will enhance the integration reform and cooperation with port authorities in the Beibu Gulf rim, and build a single-window model based on an e-port platform by the end of this year.

It will also promote cooperation between regional ports and key foreign ports in the countries where most of Zhanjiang's main imports come from. The initiative will help enhance international cooperation by building a ports alliance that will result in mutual benefits and win-win situations.

Other measures include intelligent and fast customs clearance. Entreprises are allowed to declare goods online for customs clearance, which will save considerable time and improve efficiency.

A total of 49 import enterprises participated in the trial program since the new mode of customs clearance was launched last April. The average time for customs clearance was reduced by 78.3 percent compared to the same period last year.