The number of China-Europe freight trains passing through the central corridor of the China-Europe railway service has exceeded 3,000 this year, achieving this milestone 39 days earlier than last year, CCTV News reported on Wednesday.

The 1,293rd train, carrying auto parts and general merchandise, departed from Erenhot in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, marking the 3,000th China-Europe freight train to pass through the central corridor this year.

This is the third consecutive year that the port has handled more than 3,000 China-Europe freight trains.

Erenhot is the largest land port on the China-Mongolia border. In recent years, alongside China’s deepening efforts in international economic and trade cooperation, Erenhot has experienced a significant increase in the number of trains, destinations and frequencies, as well as the variety of goods transported.

As a pivotal entry-exit point for the central corridor of the China-Europe railway service, the port now serves 74 routes to over 70 cities in more than 10 countries. Domestically, it connects with most of the cities from which these freight trains originate.

Since the first train in 2013, the port has handled almost 21,000 China-Europe freight trains. The types of goods transported have also evolved, with the proportion of high-value products such as new energy vehicles and high-end mechanical equipment rising from under 10 per cent in the early stages to over 40 per cent.

As of 8 September, the port had handled 2,646 China-Europe freight trains this year, transporting 3.4876 million tonnes of cargo — year-on-year increases of 9.5% and 15.4%, respectively, according to the China Railway Hohhot Group Co.

The number of containers travelling on the China-Europe rail route passing through the port has exceeded 300,000, achieving this milestone 23 days earlier than last year.