Liu Jianghong (right), head of cross-border e-commerce at Shopee, signs a memorandum of understanding with Shi Huangkai (left), deputy director of the office of China (Hangzhou) Cross-Border E-commerce Comprehensive Pilot Area in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province on June 26. [Photo/WeChat account: chcecpa]

The China (Hangzhou) Cross-Border E-commerce Comprehensive Pilot Area signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Shopee, a leading Southeast Asian and Taiwan e-commerce platform, on June 26.

The alliance looks to cement cooperation in regional infrastructure, talent development and industrial clusters.

According to the agreement, Shopee will set up an operational center and a logistics center in Hangzhou.

The logistics center, which will be located in Xiaoshan district, will allow Hangzhou sellers to enjoy Shopee supported logistics, including pick-up and transshipping services, and export products to Southeast Asian markets in as little as three days and at a price 30 percent lower than the market price.

Southeast Asia and China are neighbors geographically and connected culturally, with a long history of friendly contact, said Wu Changhong, an official from China (Hangzhou) Cross-Border E-commerce Comprehensive Pilot Area.

The partnership will serve as a gateway for Hangzhou enterprises to tap into the Southeast Asian market as well as countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, thus promoting the Hangzhou brands overseas.

The official cooperation partners of Shopee's talent cultivation program are unveiled in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province on June 26. [Photo/WeChat account: chcecpa]

In a further move to bolster industrial development, Shopee also launched a talent cultivation program in cross-border e-commerce in Hangzhou.

The cross-border e-commerce business is burgeoning like never before in Hangzhou, with the number of Hangzhou–based online stores jumping from 9,902 in 2016 to 14,346 in 2018.

From January to April, Hangzhou's cross-border e-commerce exports rose 26.28 percent to $2.69 billion, accounting for 19.13 percent of Hangzhou's foreign trade exports.

Launched in Singapore in 2015, Shopee has expanded its reach to Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines, with a wide range of products including consumer electronics, home appliances, beauty products, maternal products, apparel and fitness equipment.