欽州港片區(qū)：以新突破、高增幅為“陸海新通道”建設添彩

黃昀昀

得益于國際陸海貿易新通道（以下簡稱“陸海新通道”）的發(fā)展，“海鐵聯(lián)運”成為中國（廣西）自由貿易試驗區(qū)欽州港片區(qū)（以下簡稱欽州港片區(qū)）的一大亮點，欽州鐵路集裝箱中心站在其中起到“聯(lián)”的作用。在今年中國港口貨量有所下降的情況下，該中心站仍一次又一次地創(chuàng)下集裝箱辦理量佳績。

欽州港的優(yōu)異成績單

2020年10月8日，一輛滿載2962噸大豆、玉米的列車從欽州鐵路集裝箱中心站駛往昆明宜良北站，標志著“陸海新通道”（欽州港）集裝箱辦理量突破20萬標箱，同比增幅達110%。據(jù)中鐵聯(lián)合國際集裝箱廣西有限公司副總經理王鐵成介紹，目前該中心站日均集裝箱辦理量在900～1000標箱之間，和2019年同期相比，大約增長109%。該中心站在中國鐵路12個中心站中發(fā)送箱量排名第五位，辦理量排名第八位。

據(jù)了解，2019年6月30日，欽州鐵路集裝箱中心站港口作業(yè)區(qū)正式開通運營。一年多以來，該中心站集裝箱辦理量節(jié)節(jié)高升。截至2020年8月1日，其辦理量就已達到14萬標箱，僅用7個月的時間就超越了2019年全年辦理量。

該中心站作為目前中國最晚投入使用的中心站，是如何在疫情夾擊中利用后發(fā)優(yōu)勢，乘勝追擊的？王鐵成給出了答案：這段時間里，該中心站主要從三個方面來保證貨源的充足和高效的作業(yè)。“首先，我們積極與重慶、成都、昆明幾個中心站聯(lián)系，加開點對點集裝箱班列。其次，在中國鐵路南寧局集團有限公司、廣西沿海鐵路股份有限公司的調度指揮下，我們加快裝、卸、排作業(yè)組織，提高場站的工作效率。最后，我們通過為客戶提供更優(yōu)質的服務，引入更多的貨源。”他說。

王鐵成對中心站的發(fā)展前景充滿信心，這主要是因為該中心站處于欽州港片區(qū)，是“陸海新通道”海鐵聯(lián)運的重要節(jié)點，承擔著貨物中轉的重要功能。他表示：“貨物可以通過我們這里發(fā)往全球。如可利用中歐班列，進入歐洲市場。利用21世紀海上絲綢之路，前往東南亞、非洲等地。”

“智慧港口”引領著未來運輸發(fā)展的新潮。近年來，各大港口都在熱火朝天地就該領域進行建設。欽州鐵路集裝箱中心站要成為后起之秀，自然也將打造智慧港口新模式看作工作的重中之重。王鐵成說，該中心站正處于過渡期，尚使用有人駕駛的集裝箱正面起重機進行作業(yè)。但預計2020年底，將完成6臺龍門吊的主體框架搭建工作，2021年6月30日前完成全部測試并投入使用。“屆時，這一中心站將變?yōu)槿詣踊o人值守的場站，通過電腦來進行集裝箱的裝卸作業(yè)，這將極大提高運輸效率，大大節(jié)約人力成本，還能充分保障員工的人身安全。”

欽州港片區(qū)希望靠海，潛力靠海

產業(yè)發(fā)展和物流的暢通密不可分，王鐵成認為，該中心站的發(fā)展對欽州港片區(qū)經濟的促進作用十分明顯。其一，物流的便利性和優(yōu)惠性有利于形成產業(yè)集聚效應。其二，就物流本身而言，海鐵聯(lián)運也能為欽州港片區(qū)經濟效益的上升提供直接助力。而2019年，西部陸海新通道上升為中國國家戰(zhàn)略，更是將欽州港片區(qū)置于聚光燈下。

為打造開放新高地，欽州港片區(qū)搶抓機遇，積極對標國內國際一流港口，加快港口硬聯(lián)通和軟聯(lián)通建設，強化海鐵聯(lián)運，加密航班航線，加快推進國際門戶港建設。經過一年的努力，欽州港片區(qū)建成欽州港東航道擴建二期工程等系列重大港口基礎設施項目。截至2020年9月，欽州港已建成8個10萬噸級集裝箱泊位，開通集裝箱航線49條，基本實現(xiàn)了中國和東盟國家主要港口全覆蓋。2020年1～9月，欽州港累計完成港口貨物吞吐量7591.26萬噸，同比增長23.54%;集裝箱吞吐量完成269.96萬標箱，同比增長32.62%，在全國港口航運普遍低迷的情況下率先逆勢實現(xiàn)雙增長。

在服務模式方面，欽州港片區(qū)緊盯海鐵聯(lián)運“最后一公里”、集裝箱全生命周期管理、通關監(jiān)管服務、提效降費等重點環(huán)節(jié)，全力推動以海鐵聯(lián)運“一單制”“一口價”“一箱到底”“國際中轉集拼便利化”等為重點的國際門戶港服務模式創(chuàng)新，進一步促進提效降費。目前，欽州港進口整體通關時間比2019年壓縮54.13%，出口整體通關時間壓縮87.81%，大大節(jié)省了企業(yè)的時間成本。

對于未來的計劃，中國（廣西）自由貿易試驗區(qū)欽州港片區(qū)管委會、中馬欽州產業(yè)園區(qū)管委會副主任莫福文表示：“推進‘陸海新通道建設是欽州港片區(qū)一項重要的工作內容，在抓好千億級綠色化工項目落地的同時，欽州港片區(qū)將充分發(fā)揮‘陸海新通道在西部地區(qū)連接‘一帶和‘一路的樞紐作用，積極推進中馬‘兩國雙園升級版建設。在投資與貿易便利化背景下，不斷深化陸海雙向開放，全力打造具有中國—東盟特色的向海經濟集聚區(qū)，促進欽州港片區(qū)高水平、高質量發(fā)展，為‘陸海新通道建設賦予新的內涵。”

·資料來源：防城港人民政府門戶網站、防城港發(fā)布、中國日報、廣西日報

When a recession hits， economies tend to become more protective by putting up trade barriers. But that isnt an advisable option for trade-dependent Southeast Asia. If anything， now is the time for ASEAN members to open up further by joining multilateral trade deals such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership （CPTPP） and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership （RCEP）.

As Southeast Asia cautiously emerges from lockdown， the policy focus is shifting from triage to kick-starting their economies. In its June forecast， the IMF estimated that Southeast Asias five biggest economies will shrink by 2% in 2020， which is better than the global average of -5%， but it will still be a severe shock for a region that has experienced growth every year since the 1960s.

Rebuilding Southeast Asias growth engine will be a challenge. The regions Big Three trade sectors — commodities， electronics and textiles — all face economic uncertainty as demand stalls. And investment， which has historically been an important economic growth driver， is set to fall dramatically across Southeast Asia， stunting the regions manufacturing growth.

The temptation at times of global economic uncertainty is to pull up the drawbridge and try to isolate the economy. Even before the COVID-19， there is evidence that Southeast Asia was retreating from internationalism as the global economy wobbled. In April 2019， the European Union-ASEAN Business Council estimated that the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations had imposed some 6，000 separate non-tariff barriers to trade across the region.

But giving in to the temptation of more protectionism would be a mistake. Barriers built in an attempt to isolate an economy from uncertainty have a tendency to become barriers to growth.

Recovery from the pandemic is a challenge， but it is also an opportunity for a policy reset： a new chance to create a transparent， coordinated and low-tariff trade environment which facilitates short-term recovery and sets the stage for long-term prosperity.

The key lies in free trade agreements， specifically the RCEP and the CPTPP.

RCEP accounts for 30% of the worlds population and 29 of global gross domestic product. CPTPP is a comprehensive， high-standard regional free-trade pact which brings together 11 economies from both sides of the Pacific， representing a little under 14% of the global economy.

At a time of increased protectionism and economic headwinds， these agreements promise to open the door to a new era of trade and investment integration and certainty between nations， maintain a rules-based order， and create a level playing field for large and small countries.

RCEP — which includes the ten ASEAN nations， China， Japan， South Korea， Australia and New Zealand — is reportedly down to the “l(fā)ast mile” details after almost a decade of negotiations. Obviously， a finalized RCEP agreement will be a welcome and timely economic boost for businesses seeking to offset the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. HSBC encourages ASEAN members to conclude these negotiations ahead of the RCEP summit later this year. RCEP members also have explicitly stated that they will “l(fā)eave the door open” for India to rejoin.

FTAs can also create a hedge for Southeast Asian markets who may otherwise be exposed and vulnerable to trade barriers from traditional trade partners.

Thailand， Indonesia and the Philippines have been weighing up the cost and rewards of joining Singapore， Malaysia， Vietnam and Brunei in the CPTPP. But with global economic prospects not as bright as they were nine months ago， these markets may need to choose pragmatism over perfection when assessing the viability of CPTPP. The risks of missing out may prove costly.

Regional FTAs like RCEP and CPTPP are also driving important domestic regulatory reforms， including in areas like labor laws （links to labor productivity）， investment liberalization， cybersecurity， cross-border data rules and intellectual property protection. These reforms create less visible but material commercial incentives for trade and investment from member partners. This is only going to accelerate as we see supply chain dynamics change.

For example， HSBCs July 2020 Navigator research found that companies are seeking greater control， transparency and confidence in their supply chain production. Suppliers that can offer assurances that come under an FTA framework could find themselves with a competitive edge.

This scenario could very well be applied to Southeast Asias electronics manufacturing ecosystem. Currently Malaysia， the Philippines， Vietnam， and Thailand all vie for the lower-value electronics assembly. As producers begin to revisit their supply chain locations， in this COVID-19 environment， future locations could be selected based on which countries provide the most attractive “pull” factors.

Of course， completing an FTA does not happen overnight largely because these agreements are complex and have knock-on implications for domestic economies.

Achieving success will require these Southeast Asian governments to deliver strong and compelling messages to their constituents about the benefits that these agreements will bring. They will also need to complement trade policy with domestic programs aimed at re-skilling or redeploying workers who may be adversely affected by increased foreign competition.

While it may seem counterintuitive， the current challenging economic outlook could actually be the perfect time for Southeast Asian countries to make strong and far-reaching economic and trade policy actions such as finalizing the RCEP or joining the CPTPP. In more precarious times， such as we have now， the choice is made clearer： Either we recognize， accept and embrace change and put ourselves in a position to seize opportunities， or we face being left behind.

· Source： The Jakarta Post