A freight train carrying 7 FEUs of goods departed from Wuxi, East China's Jiangsu Province on March 30, and headed for Hamburg, Germany and Moscow, Russia, marking the first China-Europe freight train from the city. 

The goods include steel components and piston rods produced by a number of enterprises in Wuxi. It will take about 25-30 days to reach Hamburg across a distance of about 11,000 kilometers, via Manzhouli or Erenhot, both land ports in North China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. 

 A manager of Wuxi PRECISION Steel Tube Co Ltd said the freight train service helps ease the pressure of exports delivery. The company mainly used seaborne shipping but found challenges due to COVID-19, such as the rising cost, a shortage of containers and more uncertainties.   

Zhu Ping, deputy head of Logistics Park at Wuxi West Station, said the new trade route provides an alternative to the city’s foreign trade companies, among which 90% have relied on trucks or maritime shipping, and will also facilitate trade with the Belt and Road countries. 

Wuxi International Freight Train Co Ltd, the freight train service operator, has signed agreements with more than 10 customers, and there are also 40 customers expressing intention of cooperation.

Contact us at english@jschina.com.cn