Rise to challenge

Despite the military conflict in Europe and the COVID resurgence in China , which have thrown an element of uncertainty into cross border trade, the China-Europe freight train service has remained resilient, being an effective supplement to sea freight.

Sources told the Global Times that since the first China-Europe train carrying Audi cars arrived in Xi'an from Bremerhaven in October 2020, the epidemic situation has been constantly changing. But the train service has always been well managed.

When Western sanctions against Moscow over the Russia-Ukraine conflict created unprecedented challenges for cross-border trade, many European companies are chipping away at the potential risks of disruption for logistic services.

The China-Europe freight train remains a leading option for many international traders, given its competitive advantage, especially as the sea transport experienced a severe bottleneck last year - as port backlog has lingered in many European ports.

A trader connected to the China-Europe freight train based in Yiwu, Zhejiang Province, who has always been a big supporter of the cargo train service, told the Global Times on Thursday that from Hamburg Port in Germany to Ningbo Port, import transportation takes 55-65 days, while the train service takes only 18 days, and the price has remained stable at around $1,000, similar to ocean freight.

While there are multiple factors that contribute to low cost, the high efficiency of Chinese ports certainly plays a part. For example, at Manzhouli port, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, a major border port for the rail service, the customs has ensured that the train is available for inspection 24 hours a day, which greatly reduces the time cost of each link in the customs clearance, the Global Times learned.

Now, there are 57 China-Europe trains entering and leaving the country through the Manzhouli railway station, reaching 13 countries and 28 cities in Europe. The goods include auto parts and other varieties.

Given the competitive edge, there has been hardly any disruption to the train service even with the geopolitical tensions in Europe, industry analysts say.