On April 26, 2026, machines roared in the Qianwan Port Area of Qingdao Port in Shandong Province, and the Dafei Savana ship, an independent West African new route vessel operated by Dafei Group, was operating intensively. On the deck, Chinese made equipment such as car parts, tires, and solar panels are piled up like mountains, about to set sail for core ports in West Africa such as Tema and Lagos.

This is not only the second African shipping route opened by Qingdao Port in 2026, but also marks the total number of its African container shipping routes reaching 11. So far, Qingdao Port has accurately covered the markets of East Africa, West Africa and North Africa, and has built a sea rail intermodal transport network with 32 international trains. Its service scope has connected 23 countries jointly building the the Belt and Road, and the maritime golden channel of foreign trade has become more and more dense. It is reported that 13 ships will operate on a weekly basis on this route. As an important fixed port of call in northern China, Qingdao Port will provide sufficient and reliable cabin support for enterprises in Shandong and the Yellow River Basin.

Innovate the clearance mode again

The stable operation of the route directly ignited the engine of non trade. According to statistics from Qingdao Customs, the total export value of Qingdao Port to non local areas will increase by 28.9% year-on-year in 2025; In the first quarter of 2026, the total export value exceeded 43.56 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 26.3%. Among them, electromechanical products surged by 37.4%, high-tech products grew by 25.7%, and high value-added products made in China are accelerating their overseas expansion through this golden channel.

In order to ensure efficient customs clearance of mechanical equipment and new three types of products, Qingdao Customs has launched a land sea linkage and sea rail direct transportation supervision mode, extending port functions to inland areas, and adding convenient measures such as early machine inspection and direct loading and lifting. The entire process realizes fast customs clearance with one declaration, one order to the end, and inter customs mutual recognition, turning logistics bottlenecks into smooth routes.

Going global with technical standards

Nowadays, Qingdao Port is not only an efficient hub for Chinese manufacturing to enter Africa, but also a convenient gateway for African specialty products such as coffee, cocoa, and copper mines to enter China, helping to facilitate two-way trade and mutual benefit between China and Africa. Keywords: port logistics, foreign trade

Deeper cooperation lies in technology output. Qingdao Port actively establishes friendly port relations with ports such as Alexandria Port in Egypt and Lom é Port in Togo, and exports experience in smart port management. From the simple collection and distribution of goods to the interconnection of standards and technology, Qingdao Port is taking practical actions to promote the high-quality development of the the Belt and Road, and inject port power into the construction of a closer China Africa community of shared future.Editor/Cheng Liting