Chengdu set to become China's next logistics hub
Chengdu is poised to become the next logistics hub in China, leveraging its mature logistics infrastructure and prime location to exploit the opportunities thrown up by e-commerce, say experts.
A new report by commercial real estate company CBRE says Chengdu is the best city in western China for logistics property investment.
"As the strategic intersection of 'one belt, one road' and 'Yangtze River Economic Belt', Chengdu is playing an increasingly important role in the area," the report says.
The capital of Sichuan province has established a comprehensive logistics network in the past decade.
The city has an express highway that goes all the way to Europe and the fourth busiest airport in China.
International warehouse developers such as GLP, Goodman and Prologis have bases in Chengdu, where they have created new logistics parks.
With its logistics network and large population, Chengdu is increasingly attracting the booming e-commerce sectors and retailers to build distribution centres.
"Rather than its competitor Chongqing, Chengdu's economy is more export-oriented, focusing on retail and trade, and it has a long history of encouraging e-commerce businesses," said an expert from a global logistics property developer who declined to be identified.
"There is a lot of potential in Chengdu's logistics market."
Chengdu is building an airport to make it the third Chinese city to have two commercial airports, after Beijing and Shanghai.
