China-Europe train: Promoting Belt and Road Initiative

The China-Europe freight train has become a symbolic leader of the Silk Road Economic Belt that China proposes to build under its Belt and Road Initiative after six years of development. 

The first China-Europe freight train started off from southwest China's Chongqing heading for Duisburg in Germany in March 2011.

According to China Railway Corporation, the number of the trains running between China and Europe last year was 1,702, a year-on-year increase of 109 percent. 

More and more Chinese cities are following Chongqing's lead, such as Zhengzhou of Henan Province, Wuhan of Hubei Province, Suzhou of Jiangsu Province, Manzhouli of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Yiwu of Zhejiang Province and Chengdu of Sichuan Province. 

Having a regular freight train service to Europe has become a proud business card for some Chinese cities.  

Customers in Europe showed strong interest in the freight train now heading from the U.K. to Yiwu, a city known as a world production and distribution center of daily necessities. The journey across Western Europe and on into Asia takes about 17 days. 

Currently, it is taking at least two weeks for business to book containers to be loaded on the China-bound train, often filled with mother-and-baby products, formula powder, red wine, precise instruments and electronic products, from not only the United Kingdom, but also France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Eastern Europe.