The Nansha Area of the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone in Guangzhou saw its imports and exports jump by an average of 14.5 percent per year since 2014, when the zone was launched, to reach 195.17 billion yuan ($31.1 billion) in 2017.

A slew of trade-facilitating measures have been implemented since 2014, with average customs clearance efficiency up by 50 percent, said Luo Jianwen, deputy director of the zone's port office, at a press conference on April 16.

The number of international shipping routes to and from Nansha port grew from 41 to 89 in the past three years, while cross-border e-commerce surged from 30 million yuan to 7.2 billion yuan during the same period.

The port of Nansha has become the second largest port in the country for automobiles traded through the parallel-import plan.

The number of shipping logistics companies in Nansha has increased 12-fold since 2014 to 4,802 as of the end of last year.

The Guangzhou Shipping Exchange has become the largest of its kind in South China, he said. With new business categories emerging in Nansha, bonded aircraft leasing has become a new area of growth for the area's foreign trade and has facilitated the import of 22 aircrafts valued at 7.34 billion, said Wu Yun, deputy chief of Nansha Customs.

The Nansha port ranks third in the country in terms of cruise travelers and experienced record growth last year, Wu said.

The commodity quality tracing system launched by the Guangdong Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau has traced $53.46 billion worth of goods, with 53.31 million tracing codes issued, said Liu Jiajun, deputy chief of the bureau's Nansha branch.

Nansha will continue to open up and innovate, strengthen cooperation with ports across the globe, support the development of new industries, and enhance its port infrastructure, Luo said.