The freight train that connects the cities of Yiwu, China, and Madrid, Spain, has already been operating for one year and there are plans to make the connection more frequent as a result of the demand for the service.
The route, which has 13,052 kilometres and passes through eight countries, will add two weekly trips, as announced by Feng Xubin, president of the operating company, Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment.
"We are aiming to have two weekly trains from Yiwu," assured Xubin, while pointing out that the idea is for more insulated containers for perishable products to be included.
For its part, the Spanish Secretary of State for Trade, Jaime García-Legaz, said that freight trains are essential to relaunch Spanish exports to China, as they reduce travel time by 14 days compared to maritime transport.
He stressed that the train connects both countries in about 21 days at a similar cost to maritime transport, which amounts to around $ 2000 per container.
So far, the train, which has been operating since November 2014, has made some 25 trips between the two cities. Yiwu is located in eastern China, at a distance of about one and a half hours from Shanghai by high-speed train, and is a market town with a 1,100 square kilometre market and 75,000 stores. Furthermore, more than 100 countries are present and it ships about a million containers per year.
China is Spain's third largest supplier, behind Germany and France. "The commercial relationship is still being built; we need to look ahead and see the opportunities, which are many," said the Secretary of State after insisting that the economic situation in China is "very positive," with a growth rate unmatched by Europe.The freight train that connects the cities of Yiwu, China, and Madrid, Spain, has already been operating for one year and there are plans to make the connection more frequent as a result of the demand for the service.
The route, which has 13,052 kilometres and passes through eight countries, will add two weekly trips, as announced by Feng Xubin, president of the operating company, Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment.
"We are aiming to have two weekly trains from Yiwu," assured Xubin, while pointing out that the idea is for more insulated containers for perishable products to be included.
For its part, the Spanish Secretary of State for Trade, Jaime García-Legaz, said that freight trains are essential to relaunch Spanish exports to China, as they reduce travel time by 14 days compared to maritime transport.
He stressed that the train connects both countries in about 21 days at a similar cost to maritime transport, which amounts to around $ 2000 per container.
So far, the train, which has been operating since November 2014, has made some 25 trips between the two cities. Yiwu is located in eastern China, at a distance of about one and a half hours from Shanghai by high-speed train, and is a market town with a 1,100 square kilometre market and 75,000 stores. Furthermore, more than 100 countries are present and it ships about a million containers per year.
China is Spain's third largest supplier, behind Germany and France. "The commercial relationship is still being built; we need to look ahead and see the opportunities, which are many," said the Secretary of State after insisting that the economic situation in China is "very positive," with a growth rate unmatched by Europe.
