Recently, the General Office of the provincial government issued the Implementation Plan for the Construction of Linkage Innovation Zones in the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone, which clearly identifies medical and health care, international trade and the marine economy as the first batch of linked industries, and selects areas with the necessary conditions in the national and provincial functional zones such as Jinan Start-up Area for Growth Drivers Transformation, National Economic and Technological Development Zone and Comprehensive Bonded Zone to carry out pilot linked innovation cooperation.

The international trade linkage area focuses on the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone Qingdao Area and carries out oil, copper mine trade, cross-border e-commerce and county e-commerce cooperation through linking the relevant economic and technological development zones in Weifang, Liaocheng, Binzhou and Zaozhuang. By leveraging the role of the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone Qingdao Area's international commodity trading platform and comprehensive cross-border e-commerce service platform and the advantages of the Qingdao Area's cross-border e-commerce industry to drive the development of international trade business in related areas.

The marine economy linkage area focuses on the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone Yantai Area and develops cooperation in the fields such as marine equipment, marine ship repair, marine fisheries and blue carbon economy by linking up with the relevant economic and technological development zones in Dongying, Rizhao and Weihai.

The relevant responsible person in the Department of Commerce introduced that promoting the construction of a linkage innovation zone in Shandong Pilot Free Trade Zone is of great significance in further amplifying the spillover effect of institutional innovation and promoting the formation of a new development pattern in which markets are connected, rules are linked, industries are integrated and innovation is promoted. By giving full play to the advantages of institutional innovation and opening up to the outside world in the Pilot Free Trade Zone and linking the industrial, policy and spatial advantages of the linkage innovation zone, the comprehensive competitiveness and opening-up influence of Shandong Province will be enhanced.