Transport logistics in China

China is the fastest growing participant in the global economy. Over the past decade, China's foreign trade increased by a factor of 1.7. This remarkable growth has occurred in spite of an inefficient logistics system lagging well behind the world's "best practices". Relieving the constraints and limitations associated with an unreliable intermodal system and time consuming administrative procedures has recently become a high-priority policy agenda for the Chinese Government. The World Bank and the Chinese Government have undertaken a joint study of the transport logistics system with a view to improving the technology base as well as its institutional capability. The study focussed on the inland distribution of seaborne containers and trade facilitation. This presentation reviews some of the early findings of this year-long study, for which more than 50 Chinese logistics specialists together with the World Bank staff and expatriate consultants have been mobilized. The presentation includes: (i) an overview of the current transport logistics system; and (ii) possible approaches for improvement of China's intermodal system. It also presents a possible framework for the future development of the logistics system in China.