Recently, reporters learned from the China Railway Shanghai Group that in the first two months of 2026, the number of China-Europe (Central Asia) freight train services in the Yangtze River Delta region saw robust growth, with a total of 525 trains and 55,000 TEUs shipped, a year-on-year increase of 27.3%. Goods such as complete vehicles, auto parts, and daily chemical products were continuously transported via these trains to countries along the routes, contributing to global economic and trade development.

It is understood that since the first China-Europe (Central Asia) freight train (Suzhou–Warsaw) was launched on September 29, 2013, after more than a decade of market cultivation, the number of operational routes for China-Europe (Central Asia) freight trains in the Yangtze River Delta has grown from one to 15, reaching 36 countries across Europe and Asia.

By the end of 2025, the fastest China-Europe (Central Asia) freight train services from the Yangtze River Delta could reach Astana, Kazakhstan, in nine days and Hamburg, Germany, in 15 days. The transport time is about one-third of that by sea, and the cost is approximately one-fifth of that by air. The types of imported and exported goods carried by these trains have also become increasingly diverse. In addition to traditional small commodities and electronic products, the share of textiles, automobiles and parts, mechanical equipment, and furniture has been growing steadily.

Currently, the outbound cargo transported via China-Europe (Central Asia) freight trains in the Yangtze River Delta region exhibits distinct characteristics based on their origin cities. Yiwu primarily ships small commodities to European countries; Suzhou mainly transports electronic products and electrical appliances to Hamburg, Germany, and Warsaw, Poland; while Hefei focuses on shipping white goods and mechanical products to Hamburg, Germany. The key departure cities for Asia-bound China-Europe (Central Asia) freight trains in the Yangtze River Delta include Lianyungang, Yiwu, Nanjing, Xuzhou, Suzhou, Hefei, and Jinhua. The main cargo types consist of export goods such as production supplies and daily necessities destined for the five Central Asian countries, as well as transit goods including electronics, electrical appliances, automobiles, and auto parts.

Additionally, return China-Europe (Central Asia) freight trains, leveraging their key advantages of speed, stability, and efficiency, are reshaping the transportation landscape of imported raw materials. Cotton yarn imported from Uzbekistan is transported via these trains to multiple locations in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Fujian, where it is promptly scheduled for production in local renowned textile enterprises. Electrolytic copper from Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan is delivered by return trains to the electronics component manufacturing sector in Shanghai and Zhejiang, becoming a vital part of China's diversified copper supply. Pulp imported from Russia is consistently supplied to papermaking enterprises in Henan and Anhui via these trains, effectively alleviating the shortage of eco-friendly virgin wood pulp and further strengthening the stability of raw material supply.

From the launch of the first China-Europe (Central Asia) freight train in the Yangtze River Delta region in 2013 to the end of 2025, a total of over 32,000 such trains were operated by railways in the region. Among these, nearly 16,000 were destined for Europe and over 16,000 for Asia. In 2025 alone, the Yangtze River Delta region operated 5,088 China-Europe (Central Asia) freight trains, shipping 516,000 TEUs, marking a year-on-year increase of 7.3% in the number of TEUs shipped.

Source: Anhui Daily