A Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train departs from Yiwu to Germany. [Photo/Yiwu Media Center]

A Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train carrying new energy vehicles, electric bicycles, daily necessities and other commodities departed from Yiwu on Nov 4 for Duisburg, Germany.

To date, the Yiwu platform of the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train has operated 1,287 trains to and from Germany carrying 103,800 twenty-foot equivalent units of goods. Under the supervision of Yiwu customs, foreign trade to Germany through China-Europe freight trains totaled 16.59 billion yuan ($2.29 billion) by now since its opening, with an average annual growth rate of 64.7 percent.

The first Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe (Yiwu-Madrid) freight train departed from Yiwu on Nov 18, 2014. The freight train, passing through cities such as Hamburg and Duisburg in Germany, arrived in Madrid, capital of Spain and the largest small commodity distribution center in Europe. It was the international train with the longest running line and stops in the most countries in the world. It allows small commodities to be shipped to Germany by land.

Germany is an important stop of the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train. With increasing China-Europe freight trains from Yiwu to Germany, a wider variety of goods, such as small commodities, solar photovoltaic panels, automobiles and spare parts, and intelligent equipment, has entered the German market.

Workers at the Yiwu Railway Port make daily check. [Photo/Yiwu Media Center]

"The Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train is not only an economic and trade train, but also a 'train of hope'," said Ye Sheng, head of Yiwu Hongsheng Customs Brokerage Co.

Ye added that the China-Europe train can ship items twice as quickly as boats. Many of the company’s customers request to have their goods shipped via the China-Europe freight train.