The China (Yiwu) Cross-border E-commerce Comprehensive Pilot Zone received a first-class rating for its work on developing cross-border e-commerce, according to results announced by the Ministry of Commerce on March 30.

It is the first time that the Ministry of Commerce has conducted an evaluation of the construction progress of the first five groups of 105 cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones across the country.

The evaluation included 40 indicators such as the implementation of the comprehensive pilot zone plan, establishment of the working mechanism, implementation of the facilitation policy, annual import and export value, annual export growth rate, number of high-tech enterprises and number of overseas warehouses.

The evaluation divides the 105 zones into four levels according to their performance. The China (Yiwu) Cross-border E-commerce Comprehensive Pilot Zone was included as one of the 10 first-class zones with "remarkable results".

Cross-border e-commerce has become a new driver of Yiwu's economic development.

In 2021, Yiwu's cross-border e-commerce transaction totaled 101.36 billion yuan ($15.93 billion), a year-on-year increase of 16.38 percent, of which the trade value via online cross-border e-commerce platforms was 40.20 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 16.53 percent.

The China (Yiwu) Cross-border E-commerce Comprehensive Pilot Zone will continue to develop via shipping methods such as Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight trains and online platforms such as the International E-business Expo, as well as favorable polices such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, according to officials.