Trade through quake-hit Gyirong port in Tibet surges in 2016
The total volume of trade at the border port of Gyirong in China's Tibet Autonomous Region hit 3.4 billion yuan (490 million U.S. dollars) in 2016, a 4.5-fold increase year on year, Lhasa customs said Tuesday.
A magnitude 8.1 earthquake hit Nepal on April 25, 2015, closing Zham and Gyirong ports. As a result, foreign trade of Tibet fell to about 5.7 billion yuan in 2015, down 59.2 percent year on year,
In October 2015, Gyirong port reopened and China-Nepal trade recovered.
Gyirong now undertakes the trade function of Zham, which used to clear about 90 percent of land-borne trade between China and Nepal before the earthquake.
"Gyirong port is expected to become a major route for trade between China and Nepal," said Yin Weifeng, deputy director of the Lhasa customs.