An entrance to the Changchun Xinglong Railway Port. [Photo/Jilin Daily]

The departure of a China-Europe freight train (Changchun-Manzhouli-Europe International Rail Freight Line) – loaded with 100 TEUs, or standard twenty-foot equivalent unit containers of goods – was recently a landmark event.

The train started out on Jan 23 from Changchun Xinglong Railway Port in Changchun, capital city of Northeast China's Jilin province, bound for Europe.

This marked the first China-Europe freight train to Europe after the Spring Festival in the Year of the Rabbit.

The goods exported in this instance included textiles, glass and auto parts, with a value of some 80 million yuan ($12 million).

The China-Europe freight train service, which is the first freight train in Jilin province linked to Europe, has become a new path for Changchun to be actively integrated into the Belt and Road Initiative as a regional central city in Northeast Asia.

In order to meet the transportation needs of export companies to the greatest extent, the freight train service maintained operations during this year's Spring Festival period on Jan 21-27.

According to reports, since the beginning of 2023, six China-Europe freight trains have completed runs. With the support of relevant administrative departments, companies have reduced the number of customs declarations and transport costs and the exported goods have successively arrived in Russia, Germany, France, Italy, and Hungary.