Li Huiyue, deputy mayor of Xiamen in East China's Fujian province, met with Huang Ruiling, president of the China region of Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), in Xiamen on Nov 20.

As part of Huang's visit to the Chinese city, she attended the launch ceremony of its 130,000-ton Splendida in Xiamen, as well as discussed cooperation with the Xiamen Port Bureau and Xiamen International Cruise Port Group.

Li extended a warm welcome to Huang and briefed her on the latest economic and social development in Xiamen, especially its performance in the port and cruise sector.

He said that as a pivotal city along the Belt and Road, as well as one of the four major cruise home ports in China, Xiamen's cruise industry has been rapidly developing in recent years.

Li added that Xiamen Port is working on improving its services and facilities, expressing hope that Xiamen will conduct further cooperation with MSC in cruise operations, freight transport, and logistics.

Huang congratulated Xiamen on its achievements in economic and social development, noting that MSC plans to include Xiamen on their list of key cities for their cruise lines next year to strengthen cooperation with the Chinese city.

Founded in 1970, MSC is a Swiss-Italian international shipping line that is headquartered in Geneva. The company operates in all major ports of the world and is the world's second-largest shipping line in terms of container vessel capacity.

MSC now owns 510 container-carrying vessels, 16 cruise liners, and 155 offices around the world, offering services to millions of customers around the world.

Li Huiyue, deputy mayor of Xiamen in East China's Fujian province, meets with Huang Ruiling, president of the China region of Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), in Xiamen on Nov 20. [Photo/fao.xm.gov.cn]