Opportunity｜Haikou, a city with talent
According to historical records, during the Song Dynasty there were merchant ships entering and leaving Haikou and mooring at Baishajin (Baisha Port), and Baishamen began to form a distribution centre for goods from inside and outside Hainan Island, with merchant ships travelling to and from Quanzhou and Fuzhou.
During the Southern Song Dynasty, some ships travelling from Guangzhou and other places to the South China Sea came to Baishajin to anchor for supplies.
During the Ming Dynasty, Haikou's maritime trade flourished and contributed strongly to the development of Haikou's economy. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, merchants from Zhejiang, Suzhou, Fujian, Gui and Guangdong settled in Haikou and set up a number of merchant houses in and around the city.
As a result of the rise of the guildhouses, the island's economy developed considerably with the emergence of large-scale sugar, textile, leather and mining industries, which contributed to the prosperity of trade in Haikou's goods.
By the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty (1821-1850), the number of shops in Haikou had increased tenfold compared to the Ming Dynasty, creating a "densely populated merchant port".
Haikou Port is located in the north of Hainan Island, bordering the Qiongzhou Strait to the north, starting from Yubaojiao in Chengmai Bay to the west and ending at Beigang Island in Puchian Bay, Wenchang City to the east, and looking north across the Qiongzhou Strait to Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong Province.
Now, Haikou port is divided into Xiuying port area, Xinhai port area and Macun port area, and the total container volume of Haikou port exceeds 2 million TEUs in 2021, which is a record high.
In addition to the advantages of the port, Haikou's strengths come from its unique geographical location and its unparalleled ecological resources.
A number of yachts are moored at the public pier of the National Sailing Base in Haikou. Photo by Xu Ersheng
Haikou also has "islands within islands", such as Haidian Island and Xinbu Island, which combine tropical and subtropical conditions, with a pleasant climate and lots of negative oxygen ions, and a bright spring all year round. Natural beaches such as Holiday Beach, Xixiu Beach and Baishamen Beach make Haikou even more beautiful.
The richness of its ecology, its long history and the coexistence of diverse cultures are the gifts of Haikou.
In an interview with Hainan media, Italian Deputy Minister of Economic Development Michele Geraci said that Haikou, with its geographical advantages, transportation hub advantages and unique policy advantages, should make better use of several major ports to promote economic development.
Where are the opportunities?
A few days ago, Xia Feng, executive director of Hainan University's Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences and a researcher at the School of Marxism, said in an interview with China.com Hainan that the Consumer Expo has expanded the circle of friends for building a free trade port in Hainan.
According to Xia Feng, "Attracting world investors to focus on Hainan's free trade port, participate in its construction and share its dividends. It also allows us to better integrate and serve the RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement). At the same time, the Consumer Expo has expanded the influence of the Hainan International Tourism Consumption Centre in ASEAN countries, especially in Southeast Asia, and expanded the consumer market in Hainan. As a result, it attracts investment to Haikou and enhances its role as the provincial capital's central city driver. The Consumer Expo is a platform that has landed in Haikou to be held, providing a unique opportunity for Haikou to raise its international profile and attract companies and talents to Haikou. Haikou should plan and use this platform well to accelerate the construction of the headquarters economy."
This year, the State Council government work report mentioned Hainan twice, with the Consumer Expo and the construction of a free trade port gaining attention.
According to Zhong Zhehui, PhD in management and director of the Hainan Microthink Regional Economic Research Institute, "The Consumer Expo itself is an international publicity platform to raise the profile of Haikou as a city. Businesses travel to and from the city, resources gather and there are great business opportunities."
The Consumer Expo involves exhibitions, academic seminars, recruitment and trading, including investment and financing as well as financial settlement, etc. Exhibitors and customers stay for inspection after attending the Consumer Expo and enter the project attraction stage, as the host city of Haikou should do a good job of industrial services, giving more opportunities for development in Haikou.
Haikou hosts a high-end academic conference that attracts many renowned scientists from home and abroad. Photo by Xu Ersheng
Zhong Zhehui told China.com Hainan that the Consumer Expo brings the latest information on international and domestic industries, as well as investment and trade opportunities and financial services. From the industry chain to the supply chain, Haikou can develop relevant product standards, brand standards and other standard documents, which gives Haikou more say.
On 1 June 2020, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council jointly issued the "General Plan for the Construction of Hainan Free Trade Port", based on the guideline of "liberalisation on the first line, control on the second line and freedom on the island", i.e. zero tariff for goods from other countries outside the country, customs for inland areas, tariffs and import duties in accordance with regulations, and the proposal that by 2025 It is proposed that by 2025, a free trade port policy system focusing on free and convenient trade and free and convenient investment will be initially established.
According to an article by Kang Chongli, head of the YK Securities Research Institute, Hainan, as a future international tourism consumption centre, will become one of the key entry points for international brands to enter the Chinese market. The fair not only attracts international brands to Hainan, but also "magnetises" a number of large brands to move their production plants and warehousing bases to Hainan, front-loading their product supply chains.
In the context of consumer upgrading, meeting customers' personalised needs is one of the core competencies of service-oriented consumption, and emerging service-oriented consumption is one of the core tracks for medium- and long-term layout.
The spillover effect of the Consumer Expo is even more obvious, and Haikou, as the capital city of Hainan Province, undoubtedly has the right time and the right place.
Free and open
Haikou is a gifted seaside city. In the eighth year of the Qing Dynasty (1858), Haikou was established as a commercial port and foreign merchant ships were seen from time to time.
Since then, the doors of Haikou have been opened to the world.
In the next five years, Haikou will speed up the implementation of the free trade port policy and make efforts to build a new high ground for opening up to the outside world. Photo by Xu Ersheng