A big screen broadcasts shots with Chinese elements on the street of Kathmandu, Nepal on October 11. Photo: VCG

Nepal has become the largest foreign trade partner for Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region for a sixth consecutive year. The booming trade between China and Nepal - under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) - could also open opportunities for Tibet to become a gateway for China's cooperation with South Asian countries such as India, experts said. 

Tibet-Nepal trade reached 2.23 billion yuan ($314 million) in the first three quarters, up 40.2 percent year-on-year. It accounted for 72.7 percent of Tibet's foreign trade in the same period, according to news site xzxw.com on Wednesday.

Tibet's exports to Nepal, have since 2014 been mainly labor-intensive commodities such as clothing and shoes, while imports from Nepal have been mainly traditional handicrafts such as bronze statues, copper ornaments and textiles.

The goods mostly move by land. The total trade value from Tibet's Gyirong Port to Nepal was 2.06 billion yuan from January to September, up 30.9 percent year-on-year, the report said.

Among several trade ports between Tibet and Nepal, Zhangmu Port was once the largest road port, carrying more than 90 percent of the trade volume between China and Nepal, according to the Xinhua News Agency. 

The port was damaged in earthquakes in 2015, but it resumed handling freight in May. Experts said the gradual resumption of Zhangmu Port will keep boosting trade between Tibet and Nepal.

Thanks to the improvement of transportation facilities in Tibet, the border trade with Nepal has been accelerating, which will boost local economic growth and improve employment, Liu Xiaoxue, an associate research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' National Institute of International Strategy, told the Global Times.

"Nepal has been actively involved in cooperation with China under the BRI in recent years, including infrastructure construction, energy supply and cultural communication," Zhang Jianping, director general with the Center for Regional Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The prosperous trade between Tibet and Nepal is a perfect demonstration of the trade momentum brought about by the BRI, Zhang said.

Next steps are to enhance the core competitiveness of border ports and further highlight the role of Tibet as a link between the Chinese mainland and South Asia and its special regional development advantages, said the report, citing a local customs official.

Besides, Nepal is a bridge between China and South Asian countries including India, and the deepening cooperation of Tibet and Nepal may usher in great opportunities for the region, such as in the trade and logistics sectors, Zhang noted.

In a joint statement released on October 13, China and Nepal agreed to intensify the implementation of the memorandum of understanding on cooperation under the BRI, as well as to enhance connectivity in ports, roads, railways, aviation and communications within the overarching framework of the trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity Network.