This photo taken on June 14, 2025 shows an inbound China-Europe freight train (R) and an outbound one at the border gate at Erenhot Port in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (File photo: Xinhua)
China's Erenhot railway port, a major border crossing between China and Mongolia in North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, saw its 3,000th China-Europe freight train of the year depart on Wednesday, marking a new milestone in the port's cross-border transport operations and reflecting steadily improving transport efficiency.
As of Tuesday, the Erenhot railway port had handled 2,999 China-Europe freight trains this year, up 11.57 percent year-on-year, transporting 2.8322 million tons of goods, up 26.74 percent, providing important support for the smooth operation of international logistics corridors.
As the only railway gateway for China-Europe freight trains along the central corridor, the Erenhot railway port currently handles 76 routes connecting more than 70 hub stations in over 10 countries, including Germany and Poland, while covering most Chinese cities that serve as departure points for the service.
The cargo mix has continued to improve, shifting from mainly metals, chemicals, and light industrial products in the early years to higher-value-added goods such as new-energy vehicles, electronics, and home appliances.
The progress at the Erenhot railway port is just one example of the rapid development of China-Europe freight trains, which have played an increasingly important role as a stabilizer for global trade.
As of August 7, the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train service, known as Yixin'ou in Chinese, had handled more than 100,000 TEUs of export cargo this year, setting a record high for the same period and remaining among the top China-Europe freight train services by shipment volume.
China-Europe freight train services have completed more than 130,000 trips carrying goods worth more than $520 billion over the past decade, an official said at a press conference in Beijing on July 28, as the rail link increasingly serves as a buffer against volatility in global shipping.
Total trips grew from 1,702 in 2016 to 20,022 in 2025, an average annual growth rate of more than 30 percent, according to the official.