Thriving border trade in Manzhouli benefits locals

A China-Europe freight train loaded with automotive parts, aviation components and computer displays departed slowly from Manzhouli railway port in Manzhouli, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, bound for Russia's Vorsino station.

The departure marked the port’s milestone of more than 30,000 China-Europe freight train trips.

The Manzhouli railway port, China's largest land port, handles more than 60 percent of China-Russia overland trade. The port has developed an integrated transport system covering rail, road and air connections, serving as a key hub for China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Local resident Chen Chunlan shows a smartphone app that lets her join border trade in Manzhouli, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Yuxiu)

To improve efficiency for returning China-Europe freight trains, the port has collaborated with border inspection and customs authorities to create an integrated system that shares information and streamlines procedures. The efforts have reduced dwell times and improved customs clearance efficiency by nearly 10 percent.

"We are accelerating 'smart port' construction, collaborating with railway departments to develop a railway data application platform that creates an integrated service management model," said Gao Yaoxun, an official with the land checkpoint of Manzhouli. "This ensures zero waiting time for China-Europe freight train inspections and zero delays in customs clearance."

The trade boom has created opportunities for locals. Chen Chunlan, who lives near the border, uses a smartphone app to buy and sell goods across the border.

"I can now handle our cooperative's orders right from my phone. Look, I earned 80 yuan ($11.23) today," she said with satisfaction.

The China-Russia mutual trade zone in Manzhouli has created new income sources for local residents.

"I joined the railway mutual trade business as a border resident last year. Now I'm a team leader with 50 people under me, all participating in border trade through our cooperative and earning corresponding income. We can make money without leaving our hometown," Chen said.

A screen displays real-time data of border residents' mutual trade in Manzhouli, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Yuxiu)

The changes go beyond individual success stories. Since 2016, Manzhouli has imported more than 5,000 Russian products. Last year, the railway port border trade zone officially began independent customs operations, becoming the first such facility in Inner Mongolia and forming a "dual-engine" framework alongside a highway border trade zone.

By the end of May 2025, Manzhouli's border trade had processed over 29,529 tonnes of commodities, up nearly 768 percent from a year earlier. Transaction values reached more than 132 million yuan, up over 413 percent year on year. Border residents earned more than 1.08 million yuan, benefiting nearly 15,500 people.

To date, the Manzhouli railway port has handled more than 30,000 China-Europe freight train trips and nearly 3 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of goods. A total of 21 China-Europe freight train routes pass through the port, connecting 13 European countries including Russia, Poland and Belgium with more than 60 Chinese cities. Goods cover 12 main categories, including consumer products, electronics, cars, and edible oil.