In 2021, all key indicators of Yantai Port in Shandong province, East China, reached new highs. According to official data, the port handled 367 million metric tons of cargo in 2021, up 8.8 percent year-on-year, and its container throughput grew 10.6 percent year-on-year to 3.65 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The business income of the port totaled 7.5 billion yuan ($1,181.46 million) last year, a year-on-year increase of 37.7 percent.

Shandong Port Group (SPG) has achieved outstanding results in the coordinated development of integration efforts and effective tactics by Yantai Port, one of the major components of SPG.

The port's primary business has been steadily increasing. According to government statistics, the port processed 115 million tons of bauxite, placing it first among China's coastal ports. Yantai Port has also experimented with new marketing models for importing bulk resources, and the port handled 42 million tons of crude oil last year.

At the same time, Yantai Port has made great breakthroughs in the construction of a multimodal transport channel, and a number of river-sea shipping routes have been developed, aiming to build a new channel for water transportation around the Bohai Sea. Efforts have also been made to expand cooperation with ports in Bohai Bay, including Shandong Bohai Bay Port Group, in order to jointly develop the western part of the Bohai Economic Rim, and a new service model will be built to ensure the stable operation of the Yantai-Qingdao container branch line.

The port will also promote the development of a two-way logistics channel between China and Africa. Official data showed that the annual delivery volume of the Chinese-African liner at Yantai Port has exceeded one million tons for the first time ever, up 90.4 percent year-on-year, making the port the largest trade port serving China-Africa trade, and an important part of the Belt and Road Initiative.

In recent years, fresh business forms have been developed, and the port's service functions and supply chain systems have been strengthened. Yantai Port contributed more than 33 billion yuan to the city's international trade, up 25 percent year-on-year, according to government data.

In November 2021, a container ship is unloaded at an international container facility in Yantai Port, Shandong province. [Photo by Tang Ke/chinadaily.com.cn]