As one of China's breadbasket regions, the potential of Henan province, and its capital Zhengzhou, in particular, are well known to policy-makers. However, it has one major disadvantage, as we just heard, it's far inland, hundreds of miles from the country's major seaports. But the establishment of a free-trade zone in the city has had game-changing consequences for not just Zhengzhou, but across central China. CGTN's Xia Ruixue explains.

Xu Chaofeng believes it's the best time for his Zhengzhou wine business. With the area's free trade zone opening last April, Xu can now import wine at reasonable prices.

XU CHAOFENG MANAGER, HENAN KAIYUAN INT'L TRADE "Before, very few chateaus were willing to make direct deals with me, because it was too complicated. I had to declare my imported wines in Qingdao. That took 10-15 days. Then I'd have them delivered to Zhengzhou. Now everything can be done here in one day thanks to the FTZ."

Xu wasn't the only one who witnessed the city's economic boom. Zhengzhou was a small county seat in the 1940s. It later became the capital of central China's Henan Province, helped by its location along the Beijing-Guangzhou railway line. Now it doubles as a transport hub. Zhengzhou plans to use its strategic location to build a stronger regional logistics center. To accomplish this, the city launched its Zhengzhou-Germany cargo train service in 2013.

SHI FENGHUA VICE MANAGER, ZHENGZHOU RAILWAY CONTAINER TERMINAL "In 2013, the trains made one round trip every week. Now they make eight. Our future plan is to expand our business to countries like Belgium and Vietnam."

In 2014, a new "Air Silk Road" in Zhengzhou unlocked more potential trade with Europe. Now, cargo planes transport food, electronics and more from Zhengzhou to Luxembourg on one of 16 weekly flights.

KOEN TEIRLINCK CAPTAIN, CARGOLUX AIRLINE "This is the 747-400. It can weigh up to about 400 tons, and take up to 120 tons of cargo."

With Henan's agricultural roots and advantageous location, its role in China's opening up is expected to only get better. Xia Ruixue, CGTN, Zhengzhou, Henan province.