Jan.4--THE Hong Kong Shippers Council and U-Freight Group (UFL) have held the Cross-border e-Commerce Import Business in China: Logistics Solutions Seminar, on problems facing online shopping.

Delegates learned that China is tightening rules monitoring product safety, import taxes, quarantine standards and market standardisation, U-Freight said.

Beijing has also set up cross-border e-commerce import service pilots in mainland cities as well as free trade zones to facilitate cross-border e-commerce imports.

According to U-Freight's Hong Kong assistant general manager Joey Cheung, new Chinese regulations for inbound e-commerce may well cause confusion. 

"U-Freight already has a system that can connect e-commerce / e-shop platforms with China Customs / CIQ that delivers data transparency, a requirement of the Chinese authorities," he said.

The seminar drew marketing professionals, retailers and international logistics service providers, said the release. 

The Sunshine Channel, he said, was one way to reduce problems in conducting cross-border e-commerce in China available to Hong Kong enterprises.

According to estimates from the China E-Commerce Research Centre (CECRC), the number of people conducting overseas online shopping in China will rise from 18 million in 2014 to 35.6 million in 2018.

"In light of the rapid development of cross-border B2C e-commerce in China, many cross-border e-commerce import services platforms are looking for foreign goods suppliers, agents and brand owners to meet mainland demand," said the release.

(Source:shippingazette)