(Yicai) Feb. 17 -- China has launched an initiative in 16 cities, including the first-tier city of Guangzhou, to open up and interconnect logistics data with the aim of reducing costs.

The cities are mostly key transport hubs in eastern and central China, such as Tianjin, Chongqing, Wuhan, Chengdu, and Zhengzhou, as well as some in the west of the country, including Urumqi and Khorgos, the National Development and Reform Commission said in a recent notice.

The initiative will serve as a model for industry data sharing and openness, playing a crucial role in advancing market-oriented data reforms and fostering high-quality growth in the logistics sector, according to Zhao Gang, director of the CIO Manage Industrial Research Institute.

The participating localities will set up data channels between government departments, logistics companies, and the operators of ports, highways, railroads, and airports, the NDRC said. The goal is to explore the creation of a multi-level logistics system that is both market-oriented and takes into account the public interest.

The initiative addresses the high barrier for data sharing between logistics resources, such as key port and railroad infrastructure, which are usually regulated by different government bodies and operated by different enterprises.

Most of the cities are important transport hubs along the Belt and Road Initiative, or significant industrial cities, commercial centers, or ports, industry insiders said. Launching the pilot projects in these cities is central to optimizing the allocation of national logistics resources, driving high-quality economic development, and advancing high-level opening-up, they added.

The NDRC set out the priorities for the cities, which include sharing multimodal transport data among various types of operators, integrating the data used by the manufacturing, commercial, and logistics sectors, establishing complete international logistics data services, and sharing data among national logistics hubs.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine