New port in Peru will boost trade with China, officials say, cutting transport time by as much as 50%

Ecuador’s Trade Ministry expects a “very significant increase” in trade with China with the opening of the Chinese-managed port in Chancay, Peru. “We expect as much as a 20% increase in exports to China in 2025, and much more in the future,” the ministry said in statement Tuesday. “Access to Chancay will shorten delivery times by 10 to 28 days, which is especially important for seafood and agricultural products.”

Ecuadorian exports to China will increase with the opening of the new Chancay port in Peru.

Javier Lanza, executive director of Contecon, the company that manages the Port of Guayaquil, says the connection through Chancay comes at a critical point for Ecuadorian exports. “We signed the trade agreement last year with China so the reduction in transport time makes many of our exports more attractive,” he said. “Chinese companies are already requesting increases in banana and shrimp deliveries, which means more production and more employment in Ecuador.”

Lanza said that before the new Peruvian port was operational, Chinese firms were concerned that bananas and other agricultural crops would suffer from shipping schedules that required as much as 55 days. “This also put pressure on growers to harvest crops for shipment at an earlier than optimal date,” he said.

The Chinese shipping company Cosco is one of the firms expecting increased shipment from Ecuador to Shanghai. Cosco’s CEO Tao Weidong is encouraging Ecuadorian growers and seafood farms to “gear up” for increased shipments. “We will need more products due to the opening of the Chancay,” he said. “The Chinese market is very impressed with the quality of Ecuadorian goods and because of the new free trade agreement the demand could grow rapidly.”

Lanza dismissed claims by some political candidates in the recent election that the Chancay port will reduce import and export volume through Guayaquil. “This is absolutely not true and, in fact, we expect traffic in Guayaquil to increase,” he said. “Because of the cargo sizes leaving Guayaquil, the ships leaving the port currently make two to three stops before going to Chinese ports. With only one stop, at Chancay, the shipping time is reduced and the demand for our products will increase.”

Lanza added that shipments to countries other than China will also benefit from Chancay. “The transport through the new port will reduce delivery times to all destinations,” he said.