Over 2,000 trucks carrying export goods to China are currently stuck at border gates in Lao Cai province. This congestion is due to China temporarily suspending import activities to prevent the spread of Covid-19. The prolonged truck congestion at the border is significantly impacting import and export operations.
Trucks waiting for export at Lao Cai
Border Gate Congestion Status
According to the goods congestion warning application, as of 11:00 AM on February 22, 2022, the highest concentration of trucks at the border was at the Lao Cai International Railway Station, with 1,111 vehicles. The Kim Thanh International Road Border Gate No. II (Lao Cai city) had 1,051 trucks. The remaining trucks are scattered at other border gates in the province.
Truck congestion at Lao Cai border gate
Reasons for Congestion
On February 17, 2022, the Lao Cai Provincial Economic Zone Authority received information from the Ha Khau Border Gate Management Board, Yunnan province (China), announcing the suspension of import activities. The reason cited was that Ha Khau detected a new domestic Covid-19 case and planned to lock down Ha Khau district for mass testing.
The temporary suspension of goods imports by Ha Khau has led to severe congestion of trucks at the Lao Cai border. The resumption time of normal operations has not yet been announced.
Response Measures
Ha Khau requested Lao Cai to temporarily halt trucks carrying export goods to Ha Khau, while the return of empty containers would continue. The Lao Cai Provincial Economic Zone Authority instructed the Border Gate Management Board to notify relevant member agencies managing the Kim Thanh International Road Border Gate No. II and import-export businesses to proactively respond to the truck congestion at the border situation.
The Lao Cai Border Gate Customs Sub-Department stated that from February 17th, China only processed vehicles from China exporting to Vietnam that had already entered the border gate area. Since February 18th, no export or import trucks have completed procedures at the Kim Thanh International Road Border Gate No. II (Vietnam) – Ha Khau (China) pair of border gates.
In addition to temporarily suspending imports from Vietnam, China has also temporarily banned its vehicles from entering the border gate area to export or receive imported goods. This further exacerbates the truck congestion at the border.
Conclusion
The truck congestion at the Lao Cai border due to the Covid-19 situation in China is causing difficulties for import and export activities. Functional agencies from both sides are coordinating to find solutions to alleviate difficulties and soon stabilize goods clearance operations.
