Intelligent LCL (Less than Container Load) shipping, which can constantly adjust according to inventories and orders, will become the main logistics mode in the field of cross-border e-commerce, said experts at the 2021 Cross-border Procurement and Supply Chain Summit on Wednesday.

Experts said that China's export model of foreign trade is currently undergoing great transformation from traditional method to cross-border trade.

International logistics in foreign trade export is also changing. The era of cross-border e-commerce is dominated by domestic export enterprises controlling goods, which is starting a new trend of international logistics with fragmented and high-frequency replenishment as the core.

In the era of cross-border logistics, because of its low cost, shipping, which accounts for more than 70 percent of the total international logistics in the traditional foreign trade era, will continue to be the main transportation carrier.

According to Made-in-China.com, small and medium-sized export enterprises have grown rapidly in recent years. As goods in logistics are mostly fragmented with high-frequency, intelligent LCL shipping represents the main logistics mode in the field of cross-border e-commerce in the future.

The pandemic has brought great changes to the international logistics market in recent years, and the soaring sea freight has led to an increase in trade costs. Under this background, experts said that small and medium-sized enterprises can cooperate with freight forwarders or logistics providers during this period to establish long-term cooperative relations. When choosing freight forwarders, they should choose those brand enterprises, or companies with the endorsement of well-known e-commerce platforms.

"The unusual phenomena of the international logistics market will only persist for some time. When the epidemic comes to an end, the development of trade, logistics and economy will continue to advance in accordance with market rules," said Xu Bo, vice-president of Fudan University Supply Chain Association.

Wang Hao contributed to this story