Ningbo Customs officials examine enameled wire that will be exported from the city. [Photo/cnnb.com.cn]

As of March 21, Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang province had issued 3,181 Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) certificates of origin for exports worth 1.03 billion yuan ($158.46 million) to RCEP member states since the agreement took effect on Jan 1.

The import tariff rate levied on exports bound for Japan by a recipient of the certificate in Ningbo - Huaxin Knitted Garment Co Ltd – has been cut from 10.9 percent to 10.2 percent. This is expected to save the company over 700,000 yuan in tariffs annually.

A manger surnamed Zhang at Huaxin Knitted Garment Co Ltd said that the favorable tax policy will allow their products to have a more advantageous price in Japan, thus improving their market competitiveness.

In the first 11 months of 2021, Ningbo's import and export volume to other RCEP member countries reached 286.71 billion yuan, accounting for 26.3 percent of the city's total during the period, official statistics from Ningbo Customs show.

This means more than a quarter of Ningbo's imports and exports will be subjected to zero tariffs in 10 years.

The RCEP involves 10 ASEAN member states, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. The 15 states account for about 30 percent of the world's total population, gross domestic product and trade.