China- EU trade seen expanding 2- 3% in ’ 21, buoyed by trains
Despite the global COVID- 19 pandemic and logistics hurdles, China- Europe freight trains went against the trend in 2020 with 12,400 trains dispatched, up 50 percent year- on- year, according to a report that China State Railway Group ( China Railway) sent to the Global Times on Monday.
It was the first year the number of trains exceeded 10,000 since the launch in 2011, marking resilient bilateral trade in hard times.
Industry experts said that with negotiations completed for an epic bilateral investment treaty ( BIT) between China and the EU at year- end, bilateral trade is likely to grow further this year.
The number of containers delivered by the China- Europe freight trains reached 1.13 million, up 56 percent year- on- year, according to the report by China Railway.
The number of trains operating in a single month was stable at more than 1,000, effectively serving the new development pattern and international cooperation on epidemic prevention, the report said.
With sea transport disrupted by container shortages and air cargo costs soaring amid the pandemic, China- Europe cargo trains managed to keep goods moving. The record- breaking cargo train operations show the resilience of ChinaEurope trade, which boomed after China reined in the coronavirus, which enabled the country to resume production in response to orders from the West, experts said.
“It would be very good if trade between China and Europe could maintain annual growth of 2- 3 percent,” Cui Hongjian, director of the Department of European Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times.
However, the BIT still has a long way to go, as both sides have to go through their own procedures before they can implement it, according to Cui, although the completion of the negotiations has stabilized market confidence and expectations for the future.
A source at China Railway Container Transport surnamed Shi told the Global Times on Monday that in the future, the growth of ChinaEurope freight trains should not focus just on the quantity of goods transported, but more on service quality, such as the digitalization of electronic terminals and port efficiency.