Xiamen has emerged as a key node underpinning the BRI, which was first proposed in 2013 and is a national key project aiming to build a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along ancient trade routes.

According to Huang Qiang, executive deputy mayor of Xiamen, the city's trade volume with the countries and regions involved in 21st Century Maritime Silk Road reached 98.8 billion yuan ($14.5 billion) in 2018. Within the year, a total of 45 investment project from the Silk Road countries has landed in Xiamen, with the actual use of foreign capitals soaring by 83.7 percent.

The city also boasts 165 berths with throughout hitting 10.38 million TEUs in 2017, ranking it 14th worldwide. It has also opened 76 international shipping routes and 20 air routes to date. The freight train services Xiamen have launched have reached 30-plus cities in 12 countries in Europe, statistics show.

An international container freight vessel is ready to set off from Xiamen port on Dec 24. [Photo by Hu Meidong/chinadaily.com.cn]