China's landmark trade corridor cargo volume jumps 70.3 pct in first three quarters

A drone photo taken on Sept. 16, 2025 shows a cargo ship leaving the Qinzhou Port in Qinzhou City, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. As of August 2025, the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor has expanded its reach to 577 ports in 127 countries and regions, handling over 1,316 product categories. (Xinhua/Zhang Ailin)

NANNING, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Cargo volume on the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor surged 70.3 percent year on year to 1.09 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in the first three quarters of this year, according to the China Railway Nanning Group Co., Ltd.

"This year has seen the fastest growth in cargo volume since the launch of the intermodal rail-sea service, with the one-million-TEU milestone achieved in just 247 days," said Zhao Jian with the China Railway Nanning Group. "Given the current growth momentum, the annual volume is expected to exceed 1.3 million TEUs."

As of the end of August 2025, the range of goods transported via the trade corridor had expanded to 1,316 categories, encompassing dozens of major types -- including electronic products, vehicles and auto parts, machinery and food -- and had fostered new growth drivers for high-quality development in the western region.

"Since the beginning of this year, new energy vehicles manufactured by companies in Chongqing and Chengdu have been frequently shipped overseas via the trade corridor," Zhao added.

The rail-sea intermodal trains of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor now reach 75 cities in 18 provinces of China, connecting to 577 ports in 127 countries and regions worldwide.