China's import expo bolsters Belt and Road cooperation

SHANGHAI - One week before the fourth China International Import Expo (CIIE) kicked off, a China-Europe freight train arrived in Shanghai from Hamburg, Germany, completing its first roundtrip on the new route.

It was also the first time that CIIE exhibits had been transported via the freight-train service for inclusion in the event. Thirty-five containers weighing some 460 tons in total were assembled from Hamburg and Duisburg in Germany and Malaszewicze in Poland, before traveling to China.

In honor of the freight's special destination, the train was dubbed "Jinbo," which is short for the CIIE in Chinese. The variety of exhibits being transported was impressive, and included machines with an intelligent jet-washing system and electrical machinery parts. The containers were properly disinfected to meet the expo's epidemic prevention requirements.

According to Wang Jinqiu, chairman of the train's operating company in Shanghai, making use of the train rather than the traditional sea route cut the transportation time by half.

With over 70 routes, the freight-train service has provided transport support for the economic and social development in countries and regions along the Belt and Road. The new route linking Hamburg and Shanghai provides a fast-track option to enterprises from those countries participating in the CIIE, highlighting the growing influence of the event and cementing connectivity along the Belt and Road.