The Truth About the High Profits of Foreign Trade in an Inland Small City

While the foreign - trade stories of coastal cities are being told over and over again, Puyang, an inland small city in Henan Province, is quietly rewriting the rules. Mr. Zhang's garment factory sold products to Southeast Asia through export agency last year, with a profit margin 15% higher than that of traditional channels. "Many people don't know that there is a gold mine hidden in Puyang's export agency," he smiled mysteriously.

This city, which has no ports and is not close to the border, saw its cross - border e - commerce transaction volume increase by 37% year - on - year in 2022. The key to the 30% reduction in logistics costs lies in the "one - stop" export agency service cluster formed locally:

• The customs broker is directly connected to the data of Zhengzhou Customs, shortening the customs clearance time to 8 hours
• 12 licensed foreign - exchange settlement institutions provide T + 3 foreign - exchange settlement services
• The overseas warehouse network built by enterprises such as Zhongshitong covers major RCEP countries

Ms. Li's chemical raw material business almost missed the opportunity due to misunderstandings:

• Misunderstanding 1: Only suitable for small enterprises - 23% of Puyang enterprises with an annual export volume of over 5 million US dollars adopt the agency model
• Misunderstanding 2: Uncontrollable risks - The letter - of - credit + credit - insurance double - guarantee scheme covers 92% of transactions
• Misunderstanding 3: Profits being eroded - Large - scale operation has reduced the service fee from 5% to 1.8 - 2.5%

A certain bathroom accessory factory initially insisted on self - managed exports until it tried the agency service:

• The documents that originally required a 3 - person team to handle are now completed online by the agency
• Using the agent's Vietnam Certificate of Origin, the tariff has been reduced from 12% to 0
• By pre - stocking in overseas warehouses, the payment collection cycle has been compressed from 90 days to 45 days

With the implementation of the mutual recognition mechanism for ASEAN - accredited laboratories, Puyang's agencies are making arrangements:

• The testing fee for food - contact materials has been reduced by 40% directly
• The registration cycle for medical devices has been shortened by 60 days
• The halal certification agency service covers the Indonesian and Malaysian markets

"Entering the market now is like doing cross - border e - commerce in 2015," a senior practitioner revealed. "The key is to choose the right service partner." While you are still hesitating about the word "agency", the early birds have already reaped the first wave of dividends.