China-Europe freight train services saw a 16 per cent annual growth during the first half of 2023 (H1 2023), according to the China State Railway Group Co, Ltd. The number of freight train trips witnessed an increase from the previous year, reaching a tally of 8,641.

During the same period, freight train services carried approximately 936,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of goods, marking a 30 per cent increase.

As of the end of June, the services have expanded their reach to a total of 216 cities across 25 European nations. Cumulatively, these services managed a total of over 6.9 million TEUs of goods through 73,000 train trips, according to Chinese media reports.