Pinglu Canal officially opens, linking China with ASEAN

China's Pinglu Canal, the country's first major river-to-sea canal project planned and coordinated at the national level since 1949, officially opened on Wednesday.

Built at a cost of 72.7 billion yuan (about $10.75 billion), the 134.2-km canal runs from Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, to the Beibu Gulf, the closest maritime outlet for much of southwest China.

It is expected to give China's landlocked southwest a shortcut to the coast and overseas markets, particularly those in the ASEAN, the country's largest trading partner.