Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China-Europe freight trains have been increasingly favored by Chinese and foreign companies due to their advantages such as large transportation capacity, access to many countries and regions, and stability in operation.

In the first half of the year, the number of trips made by China-Europe freight trains rose by 2 percent year-on-year to 7,473. The trains carried 720,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers, up 2.6 percent from a year earlier.

A total of 2,585 China-Europe freight trains entered and left through the Manzhouli and Suifenhe ports, a year-on-year increase of 14 percent, in the first half as well.

Freight trains leaving and entering China via the Alashankou Port in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region surpassed 3,000 this year, with the cargo volume exceeding 2.5 million tonnes, according to railway authorities.

Exported goods were mainly auto parts, electronic equipment, computers, accessories, and daily necessities. Imported goods include raw chemical materials, mechanical accessories and industrial equipment.

（With input from Xinhua）