A Qilu Europe-Asia freight train operated by Shandong Hi-speed Group departed from the Jinan South Railway Station on Dec 5.

The train, carrying 53 containers loaded with tires, engraving machines, and other goods, passed through Khorgos and will arrive in Almaty, Kazakhstan, after a 10-day journey.

This is the 500th Eurasian train departing from Jinan this year, and over 700 Europe-Asia freight trains have departed from the city to date.

According to the Jinan municipal port and logistics office, the city's Qilu Europe-Asia freight train service has been developing quickly since 2019. The total number of operating trains in 2019 was five times the number in 2018.

In the first 11 months of this year, the number of operating trains reached 499, 3.6 times the amount in the same period in 2019, and ranking first in Shandong province. The Jinan Asia-Europe train has shipped 400,000 tons of goods worth $706 million so far this year.

[Photo/VCG]

The increase partly due to the city's expanding in international logistics channels. Three new freight lines for the Eurasian train service have opened to Hamburg, Germany, Kiev, Ukraine, and Venlo, the Netherlands. The routes cover more than 40 cities in 16 countries throughout Europe and Asia.

Jinan's infrastructure supporting the development of the Eurasian freight trains is improving as well. In March of this year, the Dongjia Railroad Freight Transportation Center in Jinan began operating, serving as a comprehensive hub for storage, transportation, distribution, and logistics services.

During the epidemic, Jinan Eurasian freight trains delivered 576 twenty-foot equivalent units of medical supplies to countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

The types of goods transported by the Jinan Eurasian freight train have undergone significant changes. Export goods have gradually expanded from low-value-added products such as daily necessities, garments, and small commodities to high-value-added products such as automobiles, machinery and equipment, laser engraving machines, and auto parts.

In the future, the city plans to continue promoting the Eurasian freight train service and further deepen foreign trade and opening up to the outside world.