On June 28, a fully loaded freight train left the China-Europe Railway Express (Zhengzhou) assembly center, marking a significant milestone with over 15,000 China-Europe trains launched from Henan. This "Steel Silk Road", stretching across Eurasia, now operates more than 12 trains daily, cutting the travel time from Central China to the world to just 15 days.
In 2013, Henan's first China-Europe freight train, with 41 containers aboard, departed with the sound of a long whistle, marking a new chapter in the province's opening to the world. Back then, the "steel camel caravan" operated just 13 trips a year, with only one-way export services. After 12 years of rapid growth, the total number of trips surpassed 13,000 by 2024, with 2,705 trips made that year alone. In January 2025, the cargo value for the month exceeded USD 489 million, setting a new record.
The China-Europe Railway Express in Henan now operates at a maximum monthly capacity of 545 trips. So far, it has transported over 12.28 million tons of goods, with a cargo value exceeding USD 46.4 billion. Its service network spans more than 40 countries and over 140 cities across Eurasia, forging stable partnerships with more than 8,000 overseas enterprises. (Chinese source: dahe.cn Reporter: Lei Jinwen and Zhao Meng Translator: Zhang Yahan Proofreader: Ding Lan and Zhao Hanqing)
