The development potential of China Europe trains is enormous

Standing by the Yibei River overlooking the Hamburg port area, the busy gantry crane runs continuously, and trucks entering and exiting the freight yard flow endlessly. Containers with the words "China Ocean Shipping" can be seen everywhere. Hamburg Port is located in northwestern Germany, near the mouth of the Elbe River. As the third largest container port in Europe, Hamburg Port has become an important hub for economic and trade cooperation between China and Germany and between China and Europe in recent years, taking advantage of the "the Belt and Road" initiative. In Germany's trade with China, 50% of import and export goods are transshipped through Hamburg Port.

In 2022, among the top ten trading partners of Hamburg Port, China once again led the way, with 2.46 million TEUs of containers traveling to and from China, accounting for about one-third of the total container throughput of Hamburg Port. "Axel Matten, CEO of the Hamburg Port Marketing Association in Germany, said in an interview with our reporter recently: "The joint construction of the 'the Belt and Road' has enabled Hamburg Port to achieve better connectivity with China, and Hamburg Port has become an important node in the transport of goods between Europe and China."

Matten stated that from a supply chain perspective, the most important advantage of Hamburg Port is its convenient and efficient sea and land transportation, from the port to the hinterland of Europe. In addition to sea and river transportation, the railway network around Hamburg Port is very developed, with over 50% of goods transported in and out of the port through railway. Its railway freight proportion ranks among the top in global ports. Multiple China Europe trains have established Hamburg Port as a hub station in Europe. Goods transported from China are then distributed to other parts of Europe by sea or river, "Matten said.

In 2021, there were 290 regular railway logistics routes from Hamburg to 25 destinations in China every week, and the total volume of goods transported through the China Europe freight train throughout the year reached 160000 TEUs. "Matten said that the China Europe freight train strengthened the interconnection between Europe and China. The use of electric powered railway transportation is a green and environmentally sustainable way, and the development potential of China Europe trains is enormous.

Matten introduced that in 1986, Hamburg signed an agreement with Shanghai to form a sister city and established a liaison office in Shanghai to strengthen economic and trade exchanges with China. Since the proposal of jointly building the "the Belt and Road", Hamburg Port has become increasingly close to China. Hamburg has become an important hub for European China cooperation, collaborating with Chinese companies in more fields such as environmental protection, automobiles, and intelligent manufacturing. So far, it has attracted more than 500 Chinese companies to settle in Hamburg.

Matten has visited China multiple times and has developed many partners in cities such as Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. Matten stated that the CIIE is an important platform, and Hamburg Port participates every year. He personally looks forward to attending the 6th CIIE in Shanghai this year. I hope to have face-to-face communication with Chinese friends as soon as possible to further strengthen dialogue and cooperation