Dongguan Port launches a direct shipping route to Thailand, boosting logistics efficiency for local businesses and enhancing trade opportunities.
On October 7, the vessel ZHONG CHUAN HAI YUN made its inaugural call at Dongguan Port's Phase One Terminal, marking the official launch of the 'Dongguan Port-Thailand Laem Chabang Port' direct container shipping route - a service jointly established by Dongguan Port Affairs Group and Zhonggu Logistics. The new route establishes an efficient, stable, and cost-effective maritime logistics corridor serving foreign trade enterprises in Dongguan and across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
Operating on a point-to-point direct call model, the route completes the full sea passage in just five days. The maiden voyage carried a diverse cargo mix encompassing hardware products, machinery and electrical equipment, finished paper, plastic products, and construction materials. By eliminating intermediate port calls and transshipment links, the route substantially compresses in-transit cargo cycles, enhances cross-border logistics efficiency, and reduces overall logistics costs - delivering meaningful operational support to foreign trade enterprises seeking to capture market opportunities and fulfill orders on time.
Dongguan, a globally recognized manufacturing hub with a robust industrial base and substantial foreign trade volumes, maintains deep economic and trade ties with Thailand. The direct route is precisely calibrated to serve local industry's export requirements, connecting directly to Thailand's primary gateway port with stable capacity and container supply, and a pronounced freight rate advantage. This positioning effectively reduces both transshipment costs and transit time for enterprises, continuously strengthening the competitiveness of 'Dongguan-made' goods in the Thai market. Simultaneously, the route opens an efficient and convenient logistics channel for Dongguan's major paper mills to import recycled pulp, tapioca starch, and Thai-origin fruit.
Beyond its direct trade function, the route is deeply integrated with Dongguan Port's existing domestic trade route network and inland barge feeder system, advancing an integrated logistics framework that combines inland collection and distribution with international direct shipping. This integration extends the port's hinterland reach and reinforces Dongguan Port's hub function as a critical freight support port for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
Dongguan Port Affairs Group has affirmed that the opening of the China-Thailand direct shipping route represents a new strategic fulcrum from which the group will actively pursue RCEP development opportunities, continuously expand its international route footprint, strengthen its ASEAN route network, and deepen economic and trade engagement with countries along the Belt and Road. Through these initiatives, the group aims to reinforce the 'Dongguan cargo, Dongguan-shipped' advantage, materially reduce logistics costs for enterprises, and deliver ever more efficient and accessible supply chain services to foreign trade businesses across the Greater Bay Area.
