In 2024, Shanghai’s sea and rail container throughput increased by 30% year-on-year to 900,000 TEUs, driven by the active integration of new routes covering more than 40 cities in nine provinces across China, including Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui and Sichuan, as part of the Belt and Road Initiative.
Zhong Bin, deputy marketing manager of Shanghai Port Sea-Rail Transport, said, “Sea and rail cargo exports have seen steady growth, reflecting the successful cooperation and development of the Yangtze River Delta region.”
Efforts to develop multimodal transportation are also supported by China State Railway Group’s record performance, with 1 billion tons of cargo handled in the third quarter of 2024 and container throughput up 17% to 9.6 million TEUs.
The importance of rail transport has grown in the wake of Western sanctions against Russia, which have stopped major shipping companies from calling at Russian ports. China continues to push for a modal shift in transport, making sea and rail transport an important tool for economic and trade ties within the BRI.