On February 26, 2026, with the sound of a whistle, a train loaded with car parts and e-commerce goods slowly drove out of Manzhouli Port, marking the official breakthrough of the annual traffic volume of the China Europe Railway East Passage over 1000 trains. This milestone is 26 days ahead of 2025, which not only sets a new historical record but also reflects the strong resilience of China's foreign trade.

According to the data, as of that day, the number of trains entering and leaving the country through this channel has reached 1034, transporting 105170 TEUs of goods, an increase of 48.4% and 43.2% year-on-year, showing an explosive growth trend of both quantity and quality.

As a steel caravan connecting the continents of Asia and Europe, the East Passage is composed of three strategic support points: Manzhouli, Suifenhe, and Tongjiang, weaving a huge network with 27 stable routes. This network not only connects more than 60 cities in China, but also extends its tentacles to 14 countries in Europe, becoming a key artery for smooth domestic and international circulation. It is worth noting that the Tongjiang Railway Port, as a newly emerged port of tens of millions of tons, is becoming a new favorite for cross-border e-commerce and agricultural product import and export. Its cargo volume has surged year-on-year, injecting strong momentum into the construction of the Heilongjiang Free Trade Zone.

Behind the early breakthrough is the hardcore support of the digital port system. Harbin Bureau Group Company collaborates deeply with customs and border inspection to upgrade traditional manual verification to second level release through single window data sharing and intelligent inspection technology. Taking Manzhouli Port as an example, relying on the 95306 digital port system, the shortest time for enterprises to declare and release has been compressed to less than 30 minutes, and the overall transportation efficiency has been improved by nearly 10% compared to the traditional mode. This paperless and intelligent customs clearance reform has significantly reduced the stay time of trains at ports, truly achieving instant inspection and release. Keywords: China Europe freight trains, logistics

The accelerated expansion of the eastern corridor not only effectively alleviates the pressure on the transport capacity of the western corridors such as Beijing Guangzhou and Erenhot, but also provides a more secure and stable backup corridor for China EU trade in the context of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. With the deepening of the the Belt and Road Initiative, this steel road across mountains and seas is becoming a vivid footnote to China's high-level opening up with a new attitude of efficiency, green and intelligence.Editor/Cheng Liting