Block-train service to Russia on fast track

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Containership overcapacity on the Asia-Europe trades be damned – German rail and logistics giant DB Schenker is upping its direct rail services between China and Europe in a bid to attract high-value cargo, such as electronics manufactured in the emerging Chinese inland hubs of Chengdu, Chongqing and Zhengzhou, in a bid to offer shippers a service that is cheaper than air freight and faster than shipping. There are two further upsides: first, it has the potential to improve the connectivity of the Russian market by by-passing transhipment through seaports such as Rotterdam and Hamburg; and second, it keeps down the logistics cost of producing in the Chinese interior.