A freight train loaded with 500 tons of special steels departed on June 14 from Huangshi New Port, Huangshi City of Hubei Province, bound for Hamburg, Germany.

It is the first China-Europe freight train operated from the city.

With a stop in Wuhan for cargo combination and collection, the freight train is scheduled to travel more than 10,000 km and arrive at its destination, with a delivery time of nearly one month shorter than transport by sea.

Huangshi is a strong foreign trade city in Hubei and one of China’s top 100 foreign trade cities for 12 consecutive years. Europe is the city's main export market. In 2021, Huangshi's imports and exports with Europe soared 44.4 percent to reach 3.28 billion yuan, of which, exports hit 2.84 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 60.9 percent. (en.hubei.gov.cn by Ruan Xinqi)