News / China Rail achieves record-breaking billion tonnes of rail freight in Q3

China’s drive to get more volumes onto rail tracks continues to pay dividends, with China State Railway Group (CSRG) having handled a record-breaking 1bn tonnes in Q3.

CSRG reported a 3.8% year-on-year uptick in total rail freight volumes over the three months to October including around 9.6m teu of containerised cargo, 17.3% more than in the same period in 2023.

The strong growth in boxed trade comes on the back of a strong push for modal shift by the state.

Huang Jiangnan , director of the Qinzhou Port East Railway Station, of the Coastal Railway Co, said the operator had been working particularly hard “to facilitate the integrated and efficient operation of the sea-rail intermodal transportation”.

“Meanwhile, we’ve collaborated with customs authorities to continuously optimise operation links, reducing the average time spent inspecting a single container from 10 minutes to seven minutes,” he added.

Chinese operators have also benefited from the demand for capacity in and out of Russia since the country was cut off by western transport operators following its invasion of Ukraine.

Nor has that been the only boost Chinese rail volumes have experienced as a consequence of President Putin’s aggression, with demand for rail capacity on its burgeoning China-Caucus-Europe services having increased as western shippers seek to find ways to send goods around Russia.

Data from CSRG indicated that China-Europe rail freight volumes had continued 2023’s upward trajectory, recording an 11% year-on-year bounce in the latest data, covering the six months to 30 June, showing some 1.23m teu on China-Europe routes during the period, on more than 11,400 freight trains.

And subsequent monthly figures have shown little indication that this positive momentum is on the wane.