From January to June of 2021, the total value of import and exports of goods in Harbin, capital of China's northernmost Heilongjiang province, reached 15.23 billion yuan ($2.29 billion), an increase of 22.4 percent over the same period last year and four percentage points higher than the province's overall import and export growth rate.

In order to continuously optimize the business environment at ports, Harbin Customs has formulated 11 service optimization measures to help enterprises seize opportunities and promote foreign trade development.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, Harbin Customs has been using a service commissioner system to provide one-on-one online services. 

It has carried out research on technical trade measures for imports and exports and market risks, sped up the sampling, inspection, and certification of goods, and provided enterprises with information about the latest foreign policies and regulations, market information, and epidemic prevention and control information.

In the first half of the year, Harbin Customs made strong efforts in various fields such as meat products, beer, mechanical and electrical products, and seeds, helping enterprises trade with Japan, Russia, and other countries.

Recently, a batch of traditional Chinese medicinal materials weighing 650 kilograms and worth $260,000 was exported to Japan.

Harbin Customs also supervised a total of 45 batches of imported seeds valued at $2.78 million and weighing 159.6 metric tons in the first six months. They were imported from France, Germany, Brazil, Austria, and Japan and mainly included corn seeds, soybean seeds, sugar beet seeds, and scallion seeds.

It also assisted with the export of 324 batches of frozen fruits and vegetables with a total value of 16.03 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 82.0 percent and 77.3 percent, respectively.