With nearly 100 million U.S. dollars of tax and 10,000 direct and indirect jobs generated during the past decade, China Shipping's business in Los Angeles has made contributions to U.S. economy as well as China's, said company chairman Li Shaode.

China Shipping, a conglomerate with operations across the world, started its first Far East-U.S. trade lane with Los Angeles as a major port of call in 1999. In 2002, it rented a terminal in Los Angeles port and started operations. By the end of 2011, the terminal's annual container throughput reached 1.5 million TEUs, of which 1.2 million was traded between the the United States and China.

The company's operation in Los Angeles port plays a positive role in bilateral trade and local economic development, Li told Xinhua Thursday. The terminal is now hiring around 500 local people and generates as many as 10,000 jobs.

Meanwhile, the terminal is the first "green terminal" in the world. "We have made 'green and environment protection' as the most important characteristic of the terminal," Li said. "Once the vessel is at berth, Alternative Maritime Power Supply is used to reduce emissions. All the facilities on yard use LPG as clean fuel to replace traditional diesel."

"The concerns of the local community are taken seriously," he said. "We also made a lot of efforts in lightening and noise control, and all of our efforts are well recognized by the local government and communities."

Echoing Li, Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Thursday that China Shipping's terminal is the greenest port in the world. "Look at how clean the air is in the port, as you know the port had always been the biggest pollutant in the region," he told reporters during a visit to the port.

Thanks to China's accession to the World Trade Organization, China Shipping's overseas business is growing fast. The company is now operating a fleet of more than 500 vessels of various types, with an aggregated deadweight of 28 million tons, and annual freight volume of 430 million tons. Its global network covers 90 countries and regions.

Li said the terminal in Los Angeles port is going to be enlarged in 2014 with quay length increasing to 810 meters from 700 meters and the storage area reaching 140 acres (56.66 hectares) from 100 acres (40.469 hectares). The enlargement will facilitate Chinese goods' entering into the U.S. market as well as U.S. export to China.

Running shipping business between China and the United States for over 10 years, China Shipping witnessed the increase of U.S. goods exported to China and a more balanced bilateral trade in recent years. "Full-loaded ships from the Far East to the U.S. used to carry only 20 to 30 percent of its capacity when they were back. Now, they carry over 50 percent of its capacity."

"The development of China-U.S. trade is an integral part of the globalized world economy, which is mutually beneficial," the company said in a statement, "And it is also the driving force for the further development of China Shipping."

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)