A decade on, a Singapore-China challenge is popping landlocked Chongqing into a world logistics hub | USAEMALL.com

The COVID-19 lockdowns also presented unprecedented challenges.

When Yangtze River ports stalled in 2020, ILSTC services stayed operational. “It showed customers they had an option,” Kim said.

But turning a crisis-driven shift into long-term behaviour has been slower.

Infrastructure capacity is another constraint. 

Qingling Motors’ Tan said train frequency to Qinzhou “is still relatively low”, while the port’s container handling capacity tightens during peak periods.

“When vessel booking is tight, costs rise. We hope there can be more support to ease some of these bottlenecks,” he said.

For smaller companies, barriers are more fundamental.

Singapore-based machine vision firm JM Vistec was matched through the JIDF with CISDI, a major Chongqing-based steel technology conglomerate. 

The partnership opened doors into a new industry, said JM Vistec’s managing director Eugene Goh, but has yet to translate into commercial returns. 

“At present, we haven’t converted anything into monetisation. There’s a lot of R&D on our side.”

Structural limits complicate deeper collaboration.

State-owned enterprises like CISDI cannot easily form joint ventures with foreign private firms due to “value alignment and technology outflow issues”, said Goh.

For Goh, the bigger challenge is relationship-building. “In China, problems are solved by talking face to face,” he said. 

“If they (partners) see you, they remember you.”

Even companies that actively use the corridor said awareness gaps remain.

“Cross-border financing thresholds are relatively high, and the low-interest loan processes are still not smooth,” Tan from Qingling said, calling for clearer training and briefings on eligibility and procedures.

Operational mismatches also surface in day-to-day collaboration.

Ganwei IoT’s Gu noted differences in working styles.

“In mainland China, we emphasise speed and flexibility,” she said.

In Singapore, she noted, processes are more structured and tied to fixed timelines. 

“We’ve had to continuously coordinate on timelines and pace.”

Data governance adds another layer of complexity.

Privacy regulations on both sides require dedicated data transmission lines, which raise operating costs and can make new digital services less competitive.