To accommodate the flood of imports coming to Japan from China, Mitsui and Nippon Express are working to establish a framework for a low-cost, environmentally friendly shipping distribution network that will run between China, Korea, and Japan. Mitsui and Heung-A Shipping Company have jointly purchased 66,000 square meters of land to build a distribution center in the South Korean port of Pusan, which they expect to have in operation by summer 2005.

The plan calls for import goods from China to be centrally stored in the Pusan warehouse. After inspections, the goods will be shipped to the most appropriate port in Japan to facilitate domestic delivery. Presently, when Chinese imports arrive in Japan, they usually enter at Tokyo or Osaka, are stored until time of delivery, and then delivered via cargo trucks. Although storing imported goods at the Pusan distribution center will lead to a slight increase in shipping costs, it will reduce overall distribution and storage costs by 10% or more.

Nippon Express also struck an agreement with its network partners to open a high-speed, cargo shipping route between Shanghai and Hakata (Fukuoka) in Southern Japan. Now with the addition of ships running from Pusan to Hakata, the bulk of Chinese imports will flow into Japan through the Hakata port. Nippon Express is also cooperating with Japan Railway Company (JR) to economize domestic delivery by running cargo ships along the coast and using JR's nationwide rail network to disperse goods to their respective destinations. This system allows the distributor or cargo owner in China or Pusan to place goods directly in a JR container and be assured that upon arrival in Hakata, JR will swiftly deliver the goods to their final destination. This alternative to air shipping is expected to slice delivery costs in half, and significantly reduce the volume of truck freight in Japan, which in turn, will cut down on carbon dioxide emissions. 

The need for the new shipping network arose from the desire of product makers in China to have distribution storage facilities closer to the factory base, so that when orders come in, goods can be shipped off just-in-time to the destination market. As such, other companies are expected to follow the lead of Mitsui and Nippon Express.