New Freight Line to Save 10 Days from Chongqing to Southeast Asia and Africa

After June 20, goods from Chongqing destined for Southwest Asia and Africa will save ten days or more and about 10% of logistical costs because of a new railway line to the sea.

Two trains from Chongqing Guoyuan Port and Guangzhou Nansha Port headed towards each other’s origin on June 20, carrying raw materials imported from Japan, Korea, the Middle East, and chemicals and machines destined for Southeast Asia, Europe, and America. This is a new freight line of achieving sea-rail combined transport between Chongqing and Guangzhou for the first time in an overall journey of 1,800 kilometers. The frequency will increase from one train to two trains a day once into normalized operation, according to Chongqing Liangjiang New Area’s report.

Nansha Port is a part of Guangzhou Port. The latter is the fifth largest port in the world, surpassing Hong Kong and Los Angeles compared by the volume of the TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit), according to data from the World Shipping Council. Nansha Port handles about 70% of the container throughput for Guangzhou’s shipping and 149 international routes, making it a significant trade base in China and in the world.

Guoyuan Port is the principal port of Chongqing. It also holds the Chinese origin for the earliest China-Europe Express that established a freight line between Chongqing through Central Asia to West Europe, making it the largest water-rail port in inland China.

The connection between the two ports will not only link the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and the Pearl River Delta, one of China’s most flourishing areas in foreign trade. It will also deepen communication between South China and the hinterland of Eurasia and improve Chongqing’s foreign trade ability, bringing great influence to global trade for Chongqing.

“Through the new sea-rail line, Guoyuan Port will be extended to major port cities in the world, which can promote our sales of Chongqing-made laptop products, mechanical and electrical products, and auto parts to more countries around the world, but also attract more national goods to enter Chongqing through Guangzhou Port,”said Qin Shubin, Vice Director of Chongqing Liangjiang New Area Administrative Committee.

(BY Dong Guannan, Liangjiang New Area Media Center)