China-Europe Railway Express: 15th Five-Year Plan's next destination?

Editor's note: Bao Shujun is a researcher of the International Cooperation Center of the National Development and Reform Commission. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

As a major international cooperation platform for the high-quality development of China-Europe Railway Express, the second China-Europe Railway Express Cooperation Forum is being held in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, on Tuesday. With the theme of "Connecting Asia and Europe for a Shared Future," the forum will host three parallel sessions focusing on efficient and safe transportation, diversified corridor development, and innovative and integrated development. It will attract numerous guests from home and abroad to enhance dialogue and exchanges among all parties, build broader consensus on international cooperation, ensure the safe, stable and smooth operation of China-Europe Railway Express, and facilitate the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee concluded successfully on October 23. The session conducted an in-depth analysis of the international and domestic situations and clearly proposed that during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China will promote the high-quality development of the BRI and upgrade the development of the China-Europe (Asia) Railway Express.

After more than 10 years of unremitting efforts, the China-Europe Railway Express has become a flagship project and iconic brand of the BRI. As an international transportation characterized by convenience, efficiency, safety, stability and green economy, it has built a golden channel for China-Europe economic and trade exchanges, providing strong and stable impetus for China's foreign trade growth and in-depth participation in international economic cooperation. In recent years, the railway has continued to release momentum, injecting strong impetus into the stable growth of China's foreign trade and the improvement of global supply chain resilience.

From 2016 to 2024, the annual number of China-Europe Railway Express trips increased from 1,702 to 19,000, with an average annual growth rate of 35 percent. The annual cargo value rose from $8 billion to $66.4 billion, and the time required to operate 10,000 trips was shortened from the initial 90 months to less than seven months. In terms of trade structure, high-value-added goods such as automobiles, mechanical equipment, and electronic and electrical products have become the main export sources of the railway. In 2024, these three categories accounted for more than 60 percent of the total, and the value of goods transported has achieved a significant increase.

As of June 10, the cumulative number of China-Europe Railway Express trips has exceeded 110,000, with a total cargo value of over $450 billion. Currently, 128 cities in China have opened China-Europe Railway Express services, reaching 229 cities in 26 European countries and over 100 cities in 11 Asian countries. The service network effectively covers the entire Eurasian continent. In recent years, China has innovated further, launching the China-Europe Railway Express with full timetable service at home and abroad, and 17 trains running on a regular weekly schedule at present. The total operation time is reduced by more than 30 percent on average, and the average cargo value per container is 41 percent higher.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China is set to promote the higher-quality construction of China-Europe Railway Express, further strengthen strategic alignment with BRI partner countries, enhance the overall planning and management of cooperation plans, deepen "hard connectivity" of infrastructure, "soft connectivity" of rules and standards, and "heart connectivity" between peoples among partner countries. It will improve the layout of a three-dimensional global network of connectivity, make the transportation network denser, continuously expand the capacity of ports along the route, raise the level of customs clearance facilitation, optimize cargo organization efficiency, and enrich the variety of goods, forming a corridor network pattern of "smooth and efficient, multi-directional extension, and land-sea interconnection."

First, the high-quality development of China-Europe Railway Express will further clarify development goals

Adhering to strategic guidance, market orientation, complementary advantages, equal emphasis on quantity and quality, and joint construction, it will coordinate the high-quality construction and high-level operation of China-Europe Railway Express. Efforts will be made to improve the quality and efficiency of the entire chain operation. By strengthening both hard and soft connectivity, optimizing cargo organization and port cooperation, the market competitiveness and sustainable development level of the railway will be effectively enhanced to serve the overall national development.

Second, the high-quality development of China-Europe Railway Express will continue to promote digital empowerment

It will build smart railway express services and establish "first-class facility networks, logistics systems, management capabilities, and service levels." With technological innovation as the core driving force, it will deepen the application of technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, and blockchain in the railway for dispatching, cargo monitoring, customs clearance services and other links, and build a full-chain digital logistics service system.

Third, the high-quality development of China-Europe Railway Express will deepen cooperation in industrial synergy and development

Based on the industrial needs of countries along the route, it will promote the in-depth integration of the railway with manufacturing, modern agriculture, and modern service industries, creating a development model of "corridor+industry+park." The railway is not only a channel for goods transportation, but also will continue to create new development opportunities.

The China-Europe Railway Express is a model for the solid implementation of the BRI, an important platform for BRI partner countries to deepen international economic and trade cooperation, and a vivid practice in building an open world economy. 

Against the backdrop of sluggish global economic recovery and challenges facing global cooperation, the spirit of connectivity embodied by the railway and the vision of common development it carries are of greater contemporary value and practical significance. In the future, China will take the China-Europe Railway Express as a link to inject strong momentum into building a more open world economy.