Photo: Screenshot from chinanews.com

A freight train carrying products such as mechanical equipment, cars and auto parts and textiles departed from Zhengzhou, Central China's Henan Province on Tuesday for Belgium, marking the 10,000th trip after 10 years' operation of the railway express that connects Central China to Europe, according to an official statement form the operator on Thursday.   

Since July 18, 2013, the train line has transported over $33.3 billion worth of goods, bridging trade between China and Europe, operator Zhongyu Port Group said in a statement posted on its WeChat account.

On board the 10,000th freight train, which is headed to Liège, Belgium, Chinese-made machinery, automobiles and textiles fill the cars. As of Tuesday, the freight line had transported 6.65 million tons of cargo, sending industrial and agricultural products to Europe while carrying more than 2,000 types of imported goods into China.

In the past decade, the development of the trains has been remarkable. In the beginning, there was only one train every month, and few customers chose freight train transportation. Now, every month, more than 300 customers book space on the trains, Kong Weidong, head of THI GROUP Zhengzhou branch, told the Global Times on Thursday.

As one of the five China-Europe freight train hubs, Zhengzhou has realized its advantages of being a traffic hub in Central China's Henan Province, as it has developed an airport economic zone and built a comprehensive bonded zone in Xinzheng, making it one of the most important stations for China-Europe freight and trade.

In the first half of 2023, Zhengzhou Xinzheng Comprehensive Bonded Zone achieved trade valued at 181.09 billion yuan ($24.7 billion), ranking second among China's comprehensive bonded areas.

Departing from Zhengzhou, China-Europe freight trains have served more than 140 cities in 40 countries, becoming a development engine for the city.

"The goods transported by the freight trains have changed a lot in the past decade. In 2013, we mainly exported tires and garments, but this year new-energy vehicles (NEV) and photovoltaic equipment products have become our customers' new favorites," said Kong.

China's NEV exports exceeded 1.25 million units in the first nine months of 2023, up 77 percent year-on-year, according to the China Passenger Car Association.