HAIKOU, March 12. /TASS/. Authorities in the southern Chinese province of Hainan plan to accelerate the creation of two major transport hubs, including an international maritime hub that will be part of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor and a regional aviation hub targeted at the Pacific and Indian oceans, the Hainan Daily newspaper reports.
In particular, the plan aims to deepen efforts to reform ship registration at Yangpu Port and ensure mutual recognition of inspections with foreign vessels. Another goal is to bring the number of vessels registered at the port to above 100.
The maritime hub will be connected to Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. New direct routes will be established, while the number of container shipping lines will exceed 80. The volume of container handling at the port is expected to reach 5.3 million TEUs.
The newspaper adds that Haikou Meilan International Airport is planned to be developed as a regional aviation hub as the number of Fifth and Seventh Freedom flights will be increased in order to boost passenger and freight traffic. Efforts will also be made to develop small airports.
In 2025, Hainan launched China’s first Seventh Freedom passenger flight, which allows an airline to operate between two foreign countries without stopping in its home country. Passenger and goods traffic was operated on 99 international routes, marking a rise of 28.6%
The province is home to almost 900 shipping companies and some 300 aviation enterprises, which creates new opportunities for international transport cooperation, the paper points out.