A China-Europe freight train loaded with new 40-foot, 35-tonne general-purpose automobile containers departed from Chongqing in southwest China on Monday, marking an innovation that makes rail service transportation of vehicles more efficient.
The containers are carrying 182 automobiles from China Changan Automobile Group Co., Ltd., an automaker headquartered in Chongqing, a major automotive manufacturing hub.
With the new containers, Chongqing is boosting the capacity of China-Europe freight train services to meet growing demand for automobile export transportation.
Compared with traditional general-purpose containers, which can carry at most three sedans or two SUVs, the new container can hold up to four sedans or four SUVs per unit, reducing the transport cost per vehicle. Meanwhile, the new container is designed to be compatible with rail, road, and maritime transport, offering more flexible equipment options to build an efficient multimodal transport network.
Chongqing boosts China-Europe freight train capacity with innovative containers
The STAR Composite Index, which reflects the performance of stocks on China’s sci-tech innovation board, closed 1.31 percent lower at 2,278.73 points on Tuesday.
The STAR 50 Index, which tracks the 50 largest stocks listed on the board that also meet certain liquidity requirements, closed 1.68 percent lower at 1,916.21 points.
The sci-tech innovation board, commonly known as the STAR Market, was inaugurated in June 2019 at Shanghai Stock Exchange. It is designed to support companies in the high-tech and strategic emerging sectors.
China’s STAR Composite Index closes lower Tuesday