The Yiwu-Vientiane freight train route on the China-Laos Railway was launched on Dec 14.

The first train to ply this new route departed Yiwu West Station in Yiwu, East China's Zhejiang province, for Vientiane, the capital of Laos, on Dec 14, carrying 70 TEUs of potash fertilizers, home appliances, machinery parts, and textile products.

The freight train traveled through Yunnan province in Southwest China before arriving at its destination after four days.

The new route is the second freight train route that connects Yiwu with Southeast Asia, following the Yiwu-Hanoi route.

The Yiwu-Vientiane freight route also facilitates trade between Central Asian countries and ASEAN countries. The 32 TEUs of potash fertilizers on the train were originally from Tashkent, capital of Uzzbekistan, and had gone through the Yiwu Bonded Zone through the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight train route before they made their way to Vientiane.

Yiwu will extend the range of its freight train services once the China-Laos Railway is connected to railway networks in Thailand, Malaysia, and other ASEAN countries in the future.

Yiwu launches the Yiwu-Vientiane freight train service on Dec 14. [Photo/zgyww.cn]