China’s New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor has officially begun operations with the departure of a cargo train from Chongqing, China.
According to Chinese state media outlet Xinhua, this marks the first outbound cargo train of the new corridor, which connects the country’s landlocked western regions to its coastal ports.
The cargo train, carrying containers filled with a variety of goods including cars, motorcycles, engines, and sodium carbonate, will travel to Qinzhou port on the southern coast of China.
From there, the goods will be shipped to Indonesia, the Philippines, Australia, and other countries and regions.
READ: COSCO SHIPPING launches Qinzhou-Luzhou intermodal train service
The New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor is a key component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a massive infrastructure and trade development programme launched in 2013.
The corridor includes a network of highways, railways, and ports that connect western China to the coastal regions, providing a more efficient and cost-effective way to transport goods to and from international markets.
The opening of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor is expected to bring significant economic benefits to China and the participating countries.
In summer 2022, COSCO Shipping Logistics launched a new logistics channel connecting the Western Land-sea Trade Corridor and the International Express train.
The first batch of 40-foot containers of Vietnamese transit goods were loaded on a freight train running through the New Western Land-sea Trade Corridor from Qinzhou Port to Chengdu.