Qingdao area of the Shandong pilot free trade zone inaugurated

The Qingdao area of the Shandong pilot free trade zone (FTZ) was launched, at a ceremony on Saturday.

At the ceremony, trading licenses were granted to firms operating inside the zone.

Wang Qingxian (left), a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Shandong Provincial Committee and the secretary of the CPC Qingdao Municipal Committee, and Meng Fanli (right), the mayor of Qingdao and deputy secretary of the Qingdao municipal CPC committee, attend the launch of the Qingdao area of the Shandong pilot free trade zone on Saturday, August 31, 2019, in Shandong Province. [Photo: Provided by the Qingdao municipal government]

Qingdao district, along with parts of the cities of Jinan and Yantai, make up the nearly 120-square-kilometer Shandong pilot FTZ. Covering 52 square kilometers, the Qingdao area is the largest of the three parts of the FTZ.

The Shandong pilot FTZ will focus on the development of maritime industry, international trade, finance, and high-level manufacturing. It was established under a master plan released by the State Council on Monday. New pilot FTZs were launched in Shandong, Jiangsu, Guangxi, Hebei, Yunnan, and Heilongjiang, bringing to 18 the total number of pilot FTZs.