President Xi Jinping and his Polish counterpart, Andrzej Duda, have marked the arrival of an express freight train from China, bearing the new logo for the China to Europe rail cargo network.
Xi marks China-Europe express freight train arrival
The 41-car train travelled from the economic powerhouse of Chengdu in southwest China to the emerging transport hub of Lodz in central Poland. The express cargo service has been running since 2013.
It brings precision instruments, IT products and clothes from China to Europe, and transports food, wine and cars back to China. 400 trips between the cities are expected to be made throughout 2016.
In 2015, trade volume between Sichuan and Poland was valued at 123 million US dollars. The railway is the fastest direct freight route between the two places, taking less than a fortnight.