In the first half of this year, the number of China-Europe freight train trips departing from Guangdong surged by 60.35 percent year on year to hit 635, according to the China State Railway Group Co, Ltd. recently.
So far, freight trains departing from the province have reached more than 20 countries and regions including Germany, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Laos and Vietnam, transporting tens of thousands of kinds of goods.
Over the past decade, with increasing number of China-Europe freight trains, Guangdong's foreign trade with countries along the Belt and Road (B&R) has grown closer. Its import and export volume with B&R countries increased from 1.11 trillion RMB in 2013 to 2.25 trillion RMB in 2022, a cumulative increase of 102.2 percent. From January to July this year, the province's foreign trade volume with B&R countries reached 1.3 trillion RMB, an increase of 7.3 percent year-on-year.
Customshelp boost GD’s foreign trade via China-Europe freight trains
Customs in Guangdong keep close contact with the operators of China-Europe rail service and railway departments to allocate the railway resources and customize services for foreign trade enterprises. They also provide special services for leading export-oriented enterprises, which have attracted more than 4,000 enterprises to export their goods through the freight trains.
More freight trains back to Guangdong have also been introduced, importing more urgently needed resources for domestic production, such as Russia's sheet materials and paper pulps. In the first half of this year, a total of 119 import freight trains were launched in Guangdong, hitting a record high.
This year, Guangzhou Customs has helped introduce three new China-Europe freight train routes, including one sea-rail route and one road-rail route, and expanded the new channel through the Suifenhe Port in Heilongjiang Province in northeast China.
In the first half of this year, the number of China-Europe freight train trips to/from Guangzhou rose by 131.58 percent year on year to reach 308. During the period, the freight trains handled a total of 28,900 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), up 130.39 percent year-on-year.
Since the launch of the first China-Europe freight train in Guangzhou on August 28, 2016, Guangzhou Customs has supervised more than 1,000 China-Europe freight trains with nearly 100,000 TEUs valued at 28 billion RMB.
Reporter | Nancy Ye
Editors | Olivia, Steven, Abby, James
Photos provided to GDToday
