context: Stringent COVID-19 lockdowns have laid bare the weaknesses in China’s logistics system, putting local protectionism, market fragmentation and disconnection of inter-regional rules in the spotlight. Building a unified national market, not least for the logistics industry, will require overcoming deep-rooted regional competition resulting from the 'political tournament system'.
In response to dire logistical blockage in areas surrounding Shanghai, which has been under lockdown since 28 Mar 2022, and to follow up with a recent State Council notice on streamlining logistical flow, vice-premier Liu He 刘鹤 held a teleconference on 18 April, specifying
- improving basic services and extending loan repayment deadlines for logistics workers
- issuing enough national uniform road passes for logistics firms
- implementing mutual recognition of 48-hour COVID-19 test results across the country
- implementing closed-loop management of drivers and allowing them to depart after being tested; no blocking of drivers whose COVID-19 test results are still being processed
- releasing C¥200 bn in bank refinancing loans for tech innovation and C¥100 bn for logistics
- setting up whitelists for key firms in trade, automobiles, integrated circuits, consumer electronics, equipment manufacturing, ag supplies, food and pharma industries
With the roll-out of policies to support logistics over the past week, road transport disruptions have been easing. MoT (Ministry of Transport) data show that by 16 April the number of closed highway toll stations has dropped by 67.7 percent to 219 (around two percent of the total), and the number of closed highway service stations has declined by almost 80 percent to 76 (1.15 percent of the total). According to the G7 IoT platform, the national truckload freight flow index has recovered from its lowest point at 70.54 percent on 6 April to 87.53 percent on 15 April.
Nevertheless, uncertainties remain as the evolving local COVID-19 situation could cause an unexpected shutdown of roads once new cases are reported. Logistics firms and truck drivers are also concerned about the effectiveness of local implementation as cross-city and provincial barriers persist. For instance, some localities still require drivers to have negative nucleic acid test results within the past 24 hours instead of 48 hours.