NANNING, May 14 (Xinhua) -- At 10:40 a.m. on Wednesday, convoys carrying electronic components, fresh vegetables, and daily necessities departed simultaneously from Nanning in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Kunming in southwest China's Yunnan Province, heading for Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam.

This marks the first time that Chinese freight vehicles operating under the Greater Mekong Sub-region Cross-border Transport Facilitation Agreement (CBTA) will reach Vietnam's inland regions directly via the newly opened route.

The route represents a significant enhancement in facilitating international road transport between China and Vietnam, resulting in a notable improvement in transportation efficiency.

Compared with previous routes, the new corridor saves each truck approximately one day in transport time and reduces costs up to 1,000 yuan (about 138.97 U.S. dollars).

China will work with Vietnam to accelerate infrastructure connectivity, lower visa fees for drivers, improve customs clearance efficiency, and advance the implementation of bilateral agreements, said Wang Xiuchun, an official with the Ministry of Transport.

Wang added that China will move to build a broad international logistics corridor focused on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), deepen regional economic cooperation, and enhance the level of the country's high-standard opening-up.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Vietnam. Over the years, the two countries have strengthened economic and trade relations. China has been Vietnam's largest trading partner since 2004, while Vietnam has been China's largest trading partner within ASEAN since 2016.

Bilateral trade between the two countries has exceeded 200 billion U.S. dollars for four consecutive years, reaching 260.65 billion dollars in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 13.5 percent.■