Hainan's island-wide special customs operations reap rewards in first three quarters

Hainan's economy has shown strong momentum since the province began island-wide special customs operations in December 2025, senior provincial officials said at a briefing in Haikou on Sunday.

The province added 238,000 new market entities in the nine months since the operations began, up 34.1 percent year-over-year, including 186,000 new enterprises, a 79.7 percent increase, according to Wang Fengli, deputy director of the Free Trade Port Working Committee Office. Twenty-two Fortune Global 500 foreign-funded companies and 139 corporate headquarters have established operations on the island, he said.

Li Feng, secretary-general of the Hainan Provincial Party Committee, said the proportion of tariff lines with zero-tariff products has increased to 74 percent, above the starting level under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. The processed-value-added tariff exemption policy now covers 11 industries, and multi-functional free trade accounts have exceeded 900 billion yuan ($135 billion) in transaction volume, he added.

Li said the opening of seventh-freedom air routes, which allow foreign airlines to operate routes between two countries without flying to their home country, and upgrades to the province's air and sea dual hubs have expanded Hainan's global connectivity. The province's four leading industries continue to strengthen their supply chains, while emerging sectors including biomanufacturing and hydrogen energy are being developed, he added.

Zhang Yueqiang, deputy director of the Hainan Provincial Department of Commerce, said processed-value-added tariff exemptions, bonded maintenance, offshore duty-free shopping, and zero-tariff policies for island residents have all been implemented. In the first three quarters, Hainan's total goods trade reached 285.44 billion yuan, up 49.8 percent year-over-year, with the trade mix shifting toward higher-value manufactured goods. Services trade totaled 56.95 billion yuan, up 11.7 percent, led by strong export growth in digital and maintenance services, he said.

Foreign investment projects are accelerating, and outbound investment cooperation is expanding steadily, Zhang said, describing Hainan's two-way opening as increasingly mature.