Recently, the State Council executive meeting reviewed and approved the "Opinions on Expanding Cross-Border E-Commerce Exports and Promoting the Construction of Overseas Warehouses." The meeting noted that developing new forms of foreign trade such as cross-border e-commerce and overseas warehouses is conducive to optimizing the structure of foreign trade and stabilizing its scale, and to creating new advantages in international economic cooperation.

　　Amid the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce, foreign trade enterprises have been stepping up efforts to build overseas warehouses and enhance their order supply capacity. What functions do overseas warehouses perform? Which enterprises are actively building them? What contribution do they make to unlocking new opportunities in foreign trade? With these questions in mind, our reporter conducted interviews.

　　Forward-Deployed Warehousing Brings Buyers and Sellers Closer

　　Early on the morning of May 29, more than a dozen workers began bustling about in a warehouse in Kostanay, Kazakhstan. Based on order information, they sorted, moved, scanned, weighed, and packed walnuts produced in Xinjiang, China, and then loaded them onto trucks for shipment. "Our overseas warehouse has served well as a 'foreign trade relay station'—overseas buyers receive their goods conveniently, and we get our money back faster!" said Huang Xiaorong, general manager of Xinjiang Halin Food Import & Export Co., Ltd. Besides serving the company's own needs, part of the warehouse space is leased out to others.

　　It is understood that the Urumqi Customs-affiliated Uchang Customs, where Huang Xiaorong filed customs declarations, has so far registered 10 overseas warehouses for enterprises in its jurisdiction, continuously advancing the "going global" of Xinjiang's distinctive, high-quality products. Today, more and more Chinese foreign trade enterprises are moving warehousing to the doorstep of overseas customers, using "foreign trade relay stations" to bring buyers and sellers closer together.

　　Shorter order delivery times—Walking into the showroom of Guangdong Yinghao Crafts Co., Ltd., one is dazzled by an array of exquisite craft ornaments and decorations. Li Xin'er, deputy general manager of the company's logistics center, told our reporter that the company has long been engaged in various distinctive handicrafts such as ceramics, Christmas balls, and decorative paintings. In recent years, overseas warehouses have greatly benefited the company's exports.

　　"As of May 28, the total value of goods we shipped this year via cross-border e-commerce B2B to overseas warehouses for distribution and sales reached 49.43 million yuan, nearly three times that of the same period last year. We expect the growth in export value to continue expanding in the second half of the year," Li Xin'er said. The company's main target markets are in Europe and the United States; if it shipped only after receiving orders, customers would have to wait one to two months for delivery. With overseas warehouses, the company can stock goods in advance and customers can pick up locally, while logistics costs are also reduced. Moreover, through the cross-border e-commerce B2B overseas warehouse export business, the company can also enjoy preferential policies such as priority inspection, integrated customs clearance, and convenient returns at Haizhu Customs under Guangzhou Customs.

　　Deeper international industrial-chain cooperation—In recent years, many Chinese enterprises have invested in and built tire factories in Southeast Asia. The parts needed for machinery maintenance are purchased in small quantities but at high frequency, making it difficult to flexibly meet customer needs through traditional trade exports. In 2020, after completing overseas warehouse registration through Qingdao Customs, Qingdao First International Trade Co., Ltd. began trying to choose, based on its actual needs, shipping methods with greater timeliness and better combinations, while enjoying conveniences such as LCL (less-than-container-load) transport and the single window.

　　"Now we have an overseas warehouse of nearly 2,000 square meters each in Vietnam and Thailand, dedicated to storing the hardware parts needed for daily operations of tire production lines. The annual export value achieved through these two overseas warehouses is around US$20 million, and supply and demand are smoothly connected along the industrial chain," Liu Shifang, the company's customs affairs manager, told our reporter.

　　More export varieties and faster growth—Liu Yinghua, chairman of Tangshan Yingdong International Trade Co., Ltd., who was on a business trip in Africa, told our reporter that the company's goods exported through cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouses are sold to many countries, including Ghana, Benin, Senegal, and Niger.

　　Liu Yinghua said overseas warehouses have become an important pillar for the company's expansion in Africa. "Our overseas warehouse in Ghana has been upgraded to a bonded warehouse, so goods entering the warehouse can defer payment of foreign tariffs, easing the pressure on the company's capital occupation. Goods shipped to the overseas warehouse can also conveniently engage in entrepôt trade and enjoy tariff reduction and exemption policies among member states of the Economic Community of West African States. Today, our import and export business covers multiple categories such as automobiles, engineering machinery, building materials, peanuts, and cotton," Liu Yinghua said.

　　Zhang Zhenkui, director of the Port Supervision Division of Shijiazhuang Customs, said that customs currently has a dedicated regulatory method for goods exported via cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouses. Like other localities, Shijiazhuang Customs is also actively explaining policies related to cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouse registration to more foreign trade enterprises.

　　Connecting the Dots to Optimize Overseas Service Networks

　　He Yadong, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, introduced that there are now more than 120,000 cross-border e-commerce entities nationwide, over 1,000 cross-border e-commerce industrial parks, and more than 2,500 overseas warehouses with a total area of over 30 million square meters. Among them, more than 1,800 overseas warehouses, covering over 22 million square meters, focus on serving cross-border e-commerce.

　　Many logistics and trade service enterprises have also spotted the business opportunities brought by "foreign trade relay stations" and are accelerating the construction of overseas warehouses.

　　Negotiating warehousing and distribution business in Indonesia and visiting local brand clients, traveling to Saudi Arabia to learn about customs clearance, delivery, and tax policy requirements, and conducting research in Thailand to optimize end-to-end logistics solutions... In the first five months of this year, Gao Junbo, head of J&T Cloud Warehouse, made four overseas business trips. In his view, these were necessary trips for J&T to scientifically optimize its overseas logistics service network.

　　"As of May this year, apart from China, J&T Cloud Warehouse has covered 11 countries including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and the United States," Gao Junbo told our reporter. At present, most overseas warehouses are still in the development stage in terms of technological application, while J&T's overseas warehouses have already adopted automated equipment including small automated assembly lines, packing stations, and forklifts to improve operational efficiency and service quality. "In recent years, the government's various policies supporting cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouses have been very strong, helping Chinese enterprises better participate in international competition. We are also continuously improving our overseas warehouse network layout and expanding operational capacity, adding a batch of new overseas warehouses in countries such as the Philippines and Mexico."

　　Beyond "hard facilities," the "soft services" supporting overseas warehouse operations are also catching up quickly.

　　From January to April this year, the volume of goods received at Zongteng Group's overseas warehouses in the United States rose by more than 50% year on year, with notable growth in other regions as well. According to Li Cong, vice president of Zongteng Group, in recent years the company has positioned itself as a "global cross-border e-commerce infrastructure service provider," actively offering integrated logistics solutions such as overseas warehousing, dedicated line logistics, and supply chain services to cross-border e-commerce merchants. The company's brands, including "GoodCang Overseas Warehouse" and "Yuntu Dedicated Line," have become leading brands in relevant domestic service sectors. Currently, the company's total overseas warehouse area worldwide reaches 1.4 million square meters, with 200,000 square meters of agency-operated warehouse space; it has built more than 80 overseas warehouses in developed countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Australia, handling over 300 million orders annually.

　　"Now, Chinese enterprises engaged in foreign trade are no longer satisfied with developing on a single e-commerce platform; they are willing to actively try multi-platform operations and multi-channel sales. This places higher demands on the service capabilities of overseas warehouses. To this end, we are continuously expanding our warehouse network layout, reducing last-mile delivery costs and times, and strengthening our dual service capabilities for connecting with overseas merchants and overseas consumers, further expanding our customer base," Li Cong said. Fuzhou Customs and other departments are also actively guiding traditional industries in their jurisdictions to deeply integrate with e-commerce platform enterprises, opening "green channels" for overseas warehouse business and encouraging more Chinese enterprises to explore overseas markets, which has further strengthened Zongteng Group's development momentum.

　　Vice Minister of Commerce Guo Tingting said that support will be given to foreign trade enterprises and logistics enterprises to make good use of overseas warehouse resources, improve their level of specialization, scale, and intelligence, and enable high-quality Chinese products to reach overseas consumers more conveniently.

A Broad Stage to Leverage More Cross-Border Business

　　Data from Qichacha shows that, as of now, Chinese cross-border e-commerce enterprises are mostly distributed in Guangdong, Shandong, Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangsu, and other places; since the beginning of this year, 3,038 new cross-border e-commerce-related enterprises have been registered, up 26.85% year on year. Along with the growth of cross-border e-commerce market entities comes an ever-broader stage for overseas warehouses.

　　Compared with the past, overseas warehouses prevent many orders from "slipping away."

　　Guangxi Luobawang Food Technology Co., Ltd. mainly exports Liuzhou's traditional specialty luosifen (river snail rice noodles) and its derivative products, including pre-packaged luosifen and luosifen seasoning packets. Since the beginning of this year, the company's export volume through cross-border e-commerce platforms has achieved significant growth, with export value also increasing year on year. In the view of Yao Hanlin, the company's chairman, overseas warehouses have played a key role.

　　"Currently, foreign consumers' demand for Chinese specialty foods like luosifen is growing ever stronger. With overseas warehouses, we can ensure that after consumers place orders, products can be shipped directly from local warehouses, satisfying customers' cravings in the shortest possible time," Yao Hanlin said. By monitoring overseas warehouse inventory status in real time, the company can replenish stock promptly and avoid sales losses caused by stockouts. In addition, overseas warehouses can handle returns and exchanges, improving after-sales service and enhancing customer trust. "At present, we are planning to further increase investment in overseas warehouses and expand to more overseas warehouse locations, ensuring that more overseas consumers can quickly enjoy high-quality luosifen products."

　　Looking ahead, overseas warehouses provide foreign trade enterprises with a more precise "profile of overseas markets."

　　Recently, Hangzhou Zhongyi Industrial Co., Ltd. exported a batch of its own-brand outdoor furniture worth about 200,000 yuan. After quickly completing document review through the Hangzhou Customs information system, the goods smoothly completed customs formalities under the cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouse export model and set sail for the company's overseas warehouse in North America. In 2023, the company's total exports through the cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouse model exceeded 100 million yuan, and in the first four months of this year export value increased by nearly 20% year on year.

　　Wang Zhuqin, the company's customs affairs manager, told our reporter that overseas warehouses not only help enterprises respond more quickly to overseas market demand, but also help them study target market trends in depth and choose suitable products for production and stocking. "The key to home products lies in providing an immersive experience. From courtyard gardens to terraces and balconies, from hotels and homestays to beaches and cruise ships, we cover a wide range of outdoor leisure scenarios. With overseas warehouses, we can also better provide after-sales service and summarize customer feedback, then use advanced IT systems and data analysis tools to optimize production and R&D in a timely manner," she said.

　　Speaking about the future prospects of overseas warehouses, several industry insiders believe that overseas warehouses have advantages such as being close to consumer markets, promoting direct exports, and building independent brands, making them infrastructure that enterprises going global focus on. In the future, as various supportive policies are further implemented, the role of "foreign trade relay stations" will be even more worth anticipating.