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A total of 16,145 freight trains operated between China and Europe from January to November, carrying 1.75 million containers, up 7 percent and 19 percent respectively year-on-year. The cargo volume has set a record, surpassing last year’s total, the service operator China State Railway Group said.

The China-Europe freight train service has expanded to 217 cities in 25 countries. Measures have been taken to improve the service’s transport efficiency, and rolling stock and traction quality have been upgraded to increase transport capacity by 10 per cent.

China-Europe trains operate on five routes with a fixed schedule, which has been in operation since the end of November. This type of service has further reduced transport time by 20 per cent. Coordination between the Railway Administration, Customs and Border Inspection has been strengthened to improve the efficiency of customs clearance.

According to the group, the increased number of China-Europe freight trains has demonstrated the steady and healthy trend of China’s foreign trade.

Walmart, the global retail giant, is strategically reshaping its supply chain dynamics by significantly increasing its imports from India while concurrently diminishing its dependence on Chinese sources

The ongoing 24-hour strike launched by GDL’s train drivers in Germany has cornered state-owned operator DB, especially its freight division DB Cargo. Links connecting ports and industrial sites are the most heavily affected. According to DB, operations currently focus on avoiding an industrial production standstill, a scenario that “cannot be ruled out.”

Major strikes across Flemish waterways will lead to supply chain disruption, and has hit operations at Antwerp – the second biggest container port in Europe. 

Action by marine pilots and public service workers, which has spread across Flanders, Belgium, has resulted in lock closures and congestion, as unions VSOA and ACOD respond to reforms to the Flemish civil service statute.  

Port of Antwerp told the industrial action started on Monday, and it was “very hard to predict” how long it would last.  

Inchcape Shipping Services (ISS) said today there were 49 ships waiting for arrival or departure at Antwerp, and raised concern that knock-on effects to wider supply chains could be expected if the strikes continued. 

ISS said: “It is unclear how many pilots want to work at full capacity… but more than likely there are not enough of them to meet demand.” 

The coordinator of the Flemish team from ACV Public Services union, Ilse Remy, explained: “If a pilot is not brought onboard, then a ship cannot sail in or out of the port. This will certainly have a major impact on all seaports in Flanders.” 

This is the first port disruption seen in North Europe for a while, and comes at an unfortunate time for shipping in the run-up to the holiday season.  

Hapag-Lloyd warned that congestion could lead to delays and disruptions in shipping schedules, but told customers it was “monitoring the situation”, while Maersk advised customers yesterday it expected a minimum of 48 hours’ waiting time and further changes in vessel schedules.  

Global e-commerce giant Amazon seems to be taking decisive steps to decarbonise its European supply chains. The company has revealed that during 2023, rail and sea transport’s share in its logistical solutions increased by 50 per cent. Trucks still play an important role in first and last-mile operations; however, Amazon claims it is committed to enhancing rail and sea transport solutions even more in the near future.

Back in 2020, the company reported an impressive 300 per cent increase in rail movements across Europe, which in 2023 increased by 50 per cent more. Currently, it claims to be using 100 rail lines within Europe. The growth is seemingly immense, and one would expect all Amazon shipments to move around via rail or sea to reach destinations around Europe.

However, it should also be noted that Amazon, being a traditional online retailer focusing on quick logistics, has been using trucks and road transport extensively to fulfil this role. Consequently, even if the share of rail is indeed steadily increasing in its operations, its total share still has space to grow, making the company a customer with great potential for rail and intermodal operators.

Some rail and multimodal logistics companies that Amazon already cooperates with in Europe include CargoBeamer, Mercitalia, VIIA and DFDS. The company also has contracts with sea operators Stena Line and Grimaldi.

Multimodality for SMEs

According to Amazon, and this is something interesting for the rail industry to keep in mind, most of its intra-European shipments concern small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which comprise 60 per cent of the platform’s sales. The best recipe to keep those customers happy is loading their cargo on intermodal units that can be easily transshiped between rail, road and ship.

A typical Amazon journey takes place between two of the company’s fulfilment centres. The intermediate stops include either rail or port terminals, with the first/last miles taking place by truck. In the case of rail, Amazon’s services resemble an ideal combined transport supply chain, where rail covers most of the distance and truck only provides the needed flexibility to and from the rail terminal.

Facing profitability setbacks after the recent steep freight rate downturns, container lines appear to be exploring other avenues to shore-up balance sheets.

In a sign of a new commercial strategy, MSC has substantially raised documentation charges for export shipments out of India.

From the end of this month, the carrier’s charges towards bill of lading (B/L) release are set to rise by some 60% above its current tariff levels and the scale of rates collected by other carriers.

According to a MSC (India) advisory, from 22 December its seaway B/L fee would increase to 6,500 rupees (about $80) per document, plus local taxes, reportedly from a current base level of 4,250 rupees.

The updated scale would be applied to “all export local and ICD (inland container depot) containers ex-India for all trades,” the Geneva-headquartered carrier said.

Other related charges, like container seal fees, would also rise, to $8 per box, which freight forwarder sources said now generally stand at $6 to $7.

On November 26th, a China-Europe freight train loaded with liquid crystal displays, diesel generators, and daily commodities departed from Wujiashan Station in Wuhan, passing through the Alataw Pass (Alashankou) border port and heading to Malaszewicze, Poland. This marked the 6001st outgoing freight train passing through Alataw Pass this year, surpassing last year by 23 days to reach this milestone of 6000 trains. Up to now this year, a total of 621,500 standard containers(TEUs) of import and export goods have passed through the Alataw Pass station, transporting over 6 million tons of cargo.

Alataw Pass is the closest port in China to Europe, making it the shortest international trade route on the “Iron Silk Road” to reach Europe. As of now, a total of 114 routes for China-Europe freight trains have passed through the border port of Alataw Pass, reaching 21 countries including Germany, Poland and others. The cargo carried by these trains involves over 200 varieties of goods, including automobiles and parts, cotton yarn, timber and others, in eight major categories.

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