A new China-Europe freight train bound for Dourges in France was launched in Jinhua, east China’s Zhejiang Province, on November 26.

Carrying engineering machinery and much-needed epidemic prevention supplies, the train will pass through Kazakhstan, Germany and other countries along the Belt and Road routes and is expected to arrive at its destination in 18 days, twice as fast as traditional sea freight.

The launching ceremony of the Jinghua-Dourges freight train at Jinhua South Railway Station, November 26, 2020. (People’s Daily Online/Meng Bin)

The cargo on the train will be distributed to France, Spain, Italy, Poland and other countries from an intercontinental logistics center in Dourges. On its return, the train will bring back agricultural products, luxury goods and other popular items to China.

By November 27, Jinhua had launched 369 China-Europe freight trains loaded with 30,550 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo.