Shanghai customs sets up FTZ bureau

Shanghai customs on Wednesday opened an antismuggling sub-bureau in the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ). The rapidly evolving environment in the FTZ needs effective control of smuggling, according to Shanghai customs. The sub-bureau will deal with criminal smuggling and pornography, to ensure a healthy economic environment in the zone. The FTZ covers a planned area of 28.78 square kilometers, including the bonded areas in Shanghai Waigaoqiao, Yangshan and Pudong Airport. The import-export volume in the region reached 113.05 billion U.S. dollars last year, about one fourth of the city's total amount. In April, Shanghai customs seized over 6,000 tonnes of smuggled waste slag and 115 tonnes of smuggled scrap tires. The Shanghai FTZ, launched in October, is a test ground for China's reforms. The zone has pledged to push for "a full-scale opening" of the financial service sector to eligible private capital and foreign financial institutions.