Recently, under the supervision of Quancheng Customs under Jinan Customs, a Shandong China-Europe Express Train, which is coordinated and operated by Shandong Hi-Speed Group, slowly departed from Jinan Dongjia Freight Center, loaded with 53 cars of steel balls, laser engraving machines and other goods, and is expected to arrive at the Almaty assembly center in 9 days. This is also the 10,000th Shandong China-Europe Express Train since its first launch in October 2018.

The person in charge of Elaite Energy Equipment Co., Ltd. said, "This year, international logistics capacity is tight and freight rates have surged. The China-Europe Express has solved the practical difficulties of logistics and transportation for us. Through the China-Europe Express, our logistics costs have been reduced by about 20%, and the transportation time has been shortened by nearly half, and our delivery capacity has also been guaranteed." Since the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed, the company has achieved rapid growth in orders in overseas markets, and has been exported to more than 50 countries and regions.

On May 25, the cumulative number of China-Europe Express Trains exceeded 90,000. Since its first launch in 2011, the China-Europe Express Train has run at an "accelerated speed".

According to the relevant person in charge of the Freight Department of China Railway Group, in China, there are 87 scheduled China-Europe train lines with a speed of 120 kilometers per hour, connecting 122 cities in China. Overseas, the overseas channel network pattern of "smooth and efficient, multi-directional extension, and sea-land interconnection" is becoming increasingly mature. As of the end of May, China-Europe trains have reached 223 cities in 25 European countries and connected more than 100 cities in 11 Asian countries, and the service network basically covers the entire Eurasian territory. Industry insiders said that as a new type of international transportation organization, China-Europe trains have become a popular international public product. Over the past decade, the capacity of China-Europe train channels has continued to increase, the quality has steadily improved, and the radiation effect has become increasingly prominent. By building a new platform for economic and trade cooperation along the route, China-Europe trains allow more "Made in China" products to reach Europe at a faster speed and better prices, while improving the people's livelihood along the route, and also opening up a new trade channel for European products to enter the Chinese market.The reporter learned from Jinan Customs that Shandong's China-Europe Express has 54 international operating routes, which can reach 26 countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, forming an international multimodal transport logistics system with multiple ports, multiple routes and multiple destinations. The quality of train operations has been continuously improved, and "trains + new formats and new models" have emerged rapidly, and the integration of trains with regions and industries has become closer. The types of exported goods have gradually expanded from low-value-added products such as daily necessities, clothing, and small commodities in the early stage to high-value-added products such as laser engraving machines and "new three items". "Chinese brands" and "Made in China" are rapidly entering the international market through China-Europe Express. At the same time, the types of goods on the return trains are constantly enriched, promoting the import of bulk commodities such as grain, agricultural materials, and cotton yarn, and creating an important channel for the import of important raw materials and livelihood materials.

Data shows that since 2011, the time required for the China-Europe Express to operate 10,000 trains has been shortened from the initial 90 months to the current 7 months, and the annual transport value has increased from US$8 billion in 2016 to US$56.7 billion in 2023. The cargo categories have expanded from IT products such as laptops and printers in the early days of operation to more than 50,000 products in 53 categories such as clothing, shoes and hats, automobiles and accessories, and daily necessities.

On June 19, under the supervision of Guangzhou Railway Station Customs under Guangzhou Customs, a China-Europe Express train loaded with air conditioners, coffee machine accessories, egg beaters and other goods departed from Guangzhou International Port and headed for Warsaw, Poland. This marks the smooth operation of the first China-Europe Express train with a full timetable in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, which will provide a more efficient and fast logistics channel for trade between the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and inland Europe.

The China-Europe Express with a full timetable refers to the China-Europe Express that runs according to the train number, route, schedule agreed upon by the railways of the countries along the route, as well as the fixed departure, port, and arrival time at home and abroad. By promoting the connection with the railway transportation rules of the countries jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative, the connection time requirements of domestic and foreign stations are clarified to achieve on-time stop and on-time departure, with more stable transportation time and higher transportation efficiency. Chen Chunshu, deputy director of the Guangzhou Railway Station Customs, said, "The China-Europe Express has a stable transportation environment and a stable route. Compared with sea transportation, it has the advantages of short transportation time, green and safe. According to calculations, taking Guangzhou to Poland as an example, the China-Europe Express with a full timetable saves more than half of the full transportation time compared with the previous sea transportation mode, and the average freight per container is reduced by about 20%."

According to customs statistics, in May this year, a total of 2,733 China-Europe Express trains were launched. Among them, 1,724 China-Europe trains were launched, transporting 186,000 TEUs, up 14% and 13% year-on-year respectively; 1,009 China-Central Asia trains were launched, transporting 74,000 TEUs, up 6% and 10% year-on-year respectively.

Industry insiders said that the rapid growth of China-Europe train traffic is a microcosm of building a three-dimensional interconnection network in port areas, promoting high-level opening up to the outside world, and building the Belt and Road Initiative with high quality. It also reflects the good trend of steady progress and quality improvement in my country's foreign trade. Editor/Zhao E