Manufacturers and traders in the industrial heartland of the Yangtze River Delta region anticipate new business opportunities arising from the Shanghai free trade zone, which was approved by the State Council on Wednesday.

For example, there is offshore trading. The purchase of goods, mainly industrial intermediary materials, from an overseas source for use in factories in another overseas market, is made possible by the zone, traders said.

"We are planning to launch a department to develop the offshore trading businesses with overseas suppliers and buyers to minimize the labor and transport costs for our clients," said Tang Xiaojie of Orient International (Holding) Co Ltd, a leading Shanghai-based export-import company.