Yemen's Houthi armed forces said they might block the Mandeb Strait to support Iran's fight against US-Israeli military strikes, and only attack ships involved in attacks on Iran and other countries. The Strait of Mande is a key waterway connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. It is known as the "water corridor" of the three continents of Europe, Asia and Africa, and has an extremely important strategic position. In history, it is called "the gate of tears" and "the Strait of death" because of its navigation danger. It has been the focus of competition between colonial countries and neighboring countries for a long time. Controlling the Strait can realize the blockade of maritime traffic.

According to the February 2026 data released by the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, affected by the Spring Festival holiday and extreme weather, the average time of container ships in China's major ports in port and berthing increased month-on-month, 1.66 days and 0.99 days respectively, but it was still significantly better than the average level of major foreign ports. The operational efficiency of major ports in Europe and the United States was generally stable, with the Port of Hamburg and New York improving, while the Port of Rotterdam and the Port of Long Beach increased slightly. The report clarifies the definition of in-port and in-berth and reflects the overall operational efficiency of the port.

After the closure of Hainan Free Trade Port, Yangpu Port has achieved leapfrog growth in the field of characteristic fresh cross-border trade by virtue of its location and policy advantages. The first quarter of this year has not yet ended, and its import fruit business volume has exceeded the total volume of 2025, an increase of 12% over the whole of last year. Relying on the advantages of proximity to Southeast Asian production areas, dense routes and convenient water and water transit, the port has added a number of fresh fruits such as Indonesian mangosteen and Thai longan, with outstanding logistics timeliness. For example, Vietnam durian takes only 2-3 days to reach directly, fully meeting the high-quality consumption demand of the market.

On March 18, the first customized railway train from Haikou to Guangzhou after the closure of Hainan Free Trade Port. The train is fully loaded with Sinopec's deep-processed resin products and strictly follows the customs supervision policy of "second-line ports" after customs closure. The transportation time limit is reduced from 5 days to 2.5 days, realizing end-to-end full-process logistics services within 3 days. This move marks the addition of an efficient, stable and green logistics channel between Hainan and Guangdong, and provides strong support for the connection between Hainan Free Trade Port and the national unified market.

On March 11, Tan Wei, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of the Wuhan Optics Valley Central City Construction Service Center, and his delegation visited the IBI Yangtze River Delta Digital Economy Headquarters, where they were warmly received by Wang Yu, CEO of Xineng Duoduo, and others. The two sides engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as the intelligent computing industry chain, digital supply chain, and industrial digitalization. The visiting delegation first toured the IBI Yangtze River Delta Digital Economy Exhibition Hall, gaining detailed insights into the operational models of various Duoduo platforms under IBI, cross-border operational strategies of industrial belts, and the technical applications and practical achievements of IBI Cloud. Wuhan East Lake High-tech Development Zone (referred to as "Optics Valley") is one of China's first national high-tech zones and is also in Hubei.

Recently, UnionLink Cross-Border Intelligent Transport signed a strategic cooperation agreement with UPS (United Parcel Service). Zhou Jianming, Deputy General Manager of UnionLink Cross-Border Intelligent Transport, and Wu Yushan, Director of Supply Chain Business Development at UPS, represented both parties in completing the signing. UnionLink Cross-Border Intelligent Transport's General Manager Zeng Tianwang, Operations Director Jiang Xianbin, UPS Asia-Pacific Project Customer Sales Director Wei Chao, and Business Development Department Key Account Manager Su Jiannan, along with other representatives from both sides, attended the signing ceremony. The two parties engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as the construction of cross-border supply chain service systems and empowerment paths for vertical industrial belts, jointly outlining a new blueprint for cross-border logistics cooperation characterized by complementary advantages and industrial synergy.

On March 16, 2026, Premier Li Qiang of the State Council presided over the eleventh plenary meeting of the State Council. The core topic of the meeting was to thoroughly study and implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech during the two sessions of the country, and to make arrangements for the implementation of the key work of the State Council in 2026. The meeting emphasized that in the first year of the "Tenth Five-Year Plan", in the face of the complex and severe internal and external environment, it is necessary to be the executor, action faction, and doer of the Party Central Committee's decision-making and deployment with higher standards, and clarified the three key points of the current work. Directions and six traction key tasks require solid development of learning and education to establish and practice the correct concept of political performance to ensure practical results.

On March 13, the Director of the Department of Foreign Investment and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce, Zhao Chunfeng, and his delegation conducted a study on the "Xianfeng Qihang" comprehensive service for going abroad at Zhongguancun Fengtai Park. The research team first visited IBI, where they were warmly received by IBI's director, senior vice president, and board secretary Pan Yong, among other leaders. The delegation visited the IBI digital economy exhibition hall, and both parties exchanged views on cross-border industry-related content, gaining an in-depth understanding of IBI's practices in the field of cross-border industries. Pan Yong, using cases, data, and application scenarios displayed in the exhibition hall, focused on introducing the company's core layout in cross-border industrial zones, digital service models, and cross-border activities.

The No. 0 container berth project in Chuanshan Port Area of Ningbo Zhoushan Port was approved by the Ministry of Transport, adding 250 meters of deep water shoreline. The project will build a 30000-ton container berth with a designed annual throughput capacity of 504000 TEUs, which aims to meet the continuous growth of container transportation demand in the hinterland, ease the pressure of full-load operation of the wharf, and inject new momentum into the port's energy level improvement. This move is a key measure for Ningbo Zhoushan Port to tap its capacity and cultivate new growth poles in the core port area.

On March 14, Shandong Ocean Shipping "SMC KLANG" set sail in Qingdao Port and officially joined its Southeast Asian route network. This is the second international feeder ship invested by the "Mountain Port Express" brand, with a rated class of 376TEU. The ship will operate in conjunction with the "SMC QINGDAO" ship to build two boutique branch lines connecting Malaysia's Port Klang to Chittagong in Bangladesh and Beau Bay in Indonesia, forming a "twin route" pattern, aiming to enhance Shandong Ocean's route density and service capability in the RCEP region and provide customers with more efficient and reliable logistics solutions.

During the 2026 Spring Festival, the volume of goods entering and leaving the Yangtze River exceeded 0.4 billion tons, an increase of 6.33 percent over the same period last year, and transportation was safe and stable. Key material support was strong, with coal transportation up 7.69 percent and container traffic up 14.27 percent. Water tourism passenger traffic showed strong growth, with cruise passenger traffic increasing by 18.01 per cent, of which inter-provincial cruise passenger traffic increased by 73.05 per cent. The Three Gorges hub has orderly navigation, with 15.488 million tons of goods passing through and 75.3 percent up in passenger reception.

this article warmly congratulates the successful conclusion of the fourth session of the 14th national people's congress. The article pointed out that the conference was held in the first year of the "15th Five-Year Plan", reviewed and approved important documents such as the government work report and the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, and passed laws such as the Ecological Environment Code, with fruitful results. The meeting emphasized that it is necessary to anchor the goals of the "Tenth Five-Year Plan", promote Chinese-style modernization through hard work and innovation, fully and accurately implement the new development concept, adhere to and improve the people's congress system, gather the wisdom of all people, and strive to achieve the "Tenth Five-Year Plan" "A good start.

The Hong Kong Shipowners Association actively responded to the national plan and the work report of the central government, and supported the consolidation of Hong Kong's status as an international shipping, trade and financial center. The article pointed out that the shipping industry is an important pillar of Hong Kong's economy. Song Ruizhi, chairman of the Shipowners' Association, stressed that the industry would strengthen cooperation and give full play to Hong Kong's unique advantages. At the same time, shipowners will promote green decarbonization, smart shipping innovation, and set up a "maritime talent cultivation alliance" to integrate industrial and educational resources. The Budget of the SAR Government has adopted a number of recommendations of the Shipowners' Association, including tax concessions and green ship incentives, to jointly help Hong Kong enhance its strategic position in global shipping.

On March 12, 2025, the Fourth Session of the 14th National People's Congress concluded successfully in Beijing. The meeting voted and passed the resolution of the government work report, the resolution of the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, and approved the 2026 National Economic and Social Development Plan and the central budget. At the same time, the meeting reviewed and approved many important laws such as the the People's Republic of China Ecological Environment Code, the the People's Republic of China National Unity and Progress Promotion Law, and the the People's Republic of China National Development Planning Law, and reviewed and approved the work reports of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate., Marking the successful completion of various agendas of the conference.

On March 11, Fuchuan Group, two major state-owned enterprises in Fujian Province, and Fujian Port Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Fuzhou. The two sides will deepen cooperation in shipbuilding, port and shipping logistics, supply chain, financial investment and other fields, give full play to their respective advantages in advanced manufacturing and international port operation, jointly serve the country's major strategies, promote the high-quality development of Fujian, and contribute to the writing of a Chinese-style modern Fujian chapter.