Officials say the establishment of the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone will firmly upgrade the nation's shipping and port industries amid the slow global economic recovery.

Wang Xinkui, director of the counselor's office of Shanghai municipal government, said transit trade has great potential in raising China's shipping activities in the zone because it will not only stimulate the export of manufacturing goods in China's Yangtze River Delta region but will also offer long-term growth opportunities to various ports in the country's Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces.

With a total area of 28.78 square kilometers, the zone manages four areas with the application of favorable customs supervision. It comprises Yangshan bonded port, Shanghai Waigaoqiao bonded zone, Waigaoqiao bonded logistics park and Shanghai Pudong Airport Free Trade Zone.