The coastal city of Yantai was included in a 2022 national list of logistics hub construction, and is the only city in Shandong province on the list, according to a notice released by the National Development and Reform Commission on Nov 18.

A total of 25 cities across the country were included in the list, all of which feature strong hub coordination abilities, prominent multimodal transport functions, and closer industrial linkage. The cities plan to leverage their advantages in resource agglomeration and radiation ability to boost the integrated development of local industries and logistics, and foster new drivers of economic development.

According to the construction plan, the Yantai National Logistics Hub will be built by Yantai Port, and the port will make full use of its advantages in port construction, and advance the coordinated development of Yantai's key logistics enterprises to promote the integrated development of the port, local industries and the city.

Yantai boasts superior advantages as a logistics hub. It enjoys advantageous a geographical position, which lies along the Yellow River and the Bohai Sea, and sits across the sea from Japan and South Korea. The city is regarded as an important bridgehead of the Belt and Road Initiative, and a gateway port city for boosting the ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin.

Yantai had more than 3,000 logistics enterprises in 2021, and 77 of which have been honored as national A-class logistics enterprises. Yantai Port Group, a subsidiary of Shandong Port Group, has total assets of more than 40 billion yuan ($5.6 billion), and undertakes 87 percent of the port cargo throughput in Yantai.

According to the city's development plan, the Yantai National Logistics Hub is intended to be built into an international logistics hub center facing Northeast Asia, a land-sea intermodal transport hub in the Yellow River Basin, and a ro-ro transportation center and commercial vehicle transfer base in Northeast Asia.

Hundreds of cars wait to be exported at Yantai Port in Shandong province. [Photo by Tang Ke/Shm News]