Chengdu: Trade hub on the silk railroad

World
Europe

“It is easier to reach heaven than to take the roads in Sichuan.”

This line from a Tang Dynasty poem describes the difficulties once faced by travelers in southwestern China.

Chengdu, today the capital of Sichuan, was especially hard to access due to the treacherous mountainous terrain surrounding it.

Yet, as a major center of silk production, the city was a key stop on the ancient Silk Road.

Today, Chengdu is a key link between China and Europe.

The Business & Innovation Centre for China-Europe Cooperation in Chengdu serves as a platform for western China to collaborate with Europe in trade, investment and technology. /China Daily Photo

At Chengdu International Railway Station, Rediscovering China finds a brand new chapter in the history of trade is being written.

Our reporters witness the arrival of a train from Nuremburg in Germany. It has traveled over 10,000 kilometers to reach China, crossing, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan.

This is one of many international rail routes connecting Chengdu with Europe.

In 2016, goods worth 1.6 billion US dollars were moved along the Chengdu-Europe rail link.

Two thousand years ago, the Silk Road facilitated the trade in luxury items, such as silk and tea, between East and West.

Today, the freight heading westward out of Chengdu is dominated by a brand new generation of commodities, chiefly technology products such as computers.

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As our reporters discover, the city started wooing technology companies around a decade ago. Today, 255 Fortune 500 companies have operations there. What’s more, half of the world’s computer chips are tested and packaged here.

Thanks to its rail link, Chengdu’s status is on the rise. The city is becoming one of China’s top-performing centers of economic activity.

Rediscovering China is a 30-minute feature programme offering in-depth reports on the major issues facing China today. It airs on Sundays at 10.30 a.m. BJT (02.30 GMT), with a rebroadcast at 11.30 p.m. (15.30 GMT), as well as on Mondays at 8.30 a.m. (00.30 GMT) and Fridays at 1.30 p.m. (05. 30 GMT).

1519km