SHIJIAZHUANG -- On Saturday, a truck carrying 150,000 piezoelectric quartzs left the comprehensive bonded zone of the Xiong'an New Area in North China's Hebei province, marking the first export business conducted by the zone.

This export business marks the start of regular operations in the comprehensive bonded zone, said Wang Lei, deputy head of Xiong'an Customs.

The goods will first be transported to Beijing and then exported to Japan.

Approved in June 2023, the zone covers a total area of approximately 0.63 square km. The first phase of the zone occupies around 0.42 square km.

The zone's policies, such as tax refunds, bonded imports and free circulation of goods within the zone, are expected to reduce institutional transaction costs and promote the agglomeration and development of high-end manufacturing and production services in line with the positioning of the new area, according to Wang.

Comprehensive bonded zones are special commercial zones that enjoy favorable taxation policies.

In April 2017, China announced a plan to establish the Xiong'an New Area, which spans the Rongcheng, Anxin and Xiongxian counties and some adjacent areas.

The new area aims to relieve Beijing of non-essential functions related to its status as the nation's capital while also advancing the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.