Statistics on the Operation of CR Express in the First Half of 2025 Released

As of July 18, 2025, data released by the CR Express Network shows that in the first half of 2025, a total of 16,659 CR Express trains were operated nationwide, a year-on-year increase of 7.3%, compared to 15,520 trains during the same period last year. Among them:

01 Ranking of Cities

Xi’an stood in the first place with 2463 trains.

Zhengzhou was the second with 1458 trains.

Chongqing was the third with 1239 trains.

Chengdu ranked fourth with 1230 trains.

In the ranking of cities, Xi’an anchored its first place with the freight number of 2463, while Zhengzhou, Chongqing and Chengdu closely followed, which forming the top tier. The rise of Kunming and Yuxi into the top ten with a number of 959 and 950 highlighted the progress of cities in the South-Western Region. Yiwu ranked seventh with a number of 774, Urumqi, Shijiazhuang and Wuhan successfully into the first ten.

The fierce compete within first- and second-tier cities reflected the growing demand of enlarging the scale of CR Express operation.

02 Distribution of Destination

There were 9310 trains bound to Central Europe, with a year-on-year decrease of 3.3%. Among them were 4456 outbound and 4854 inbound, with a year-on-year decrease of 16.5% and an increase of 13.1%, respectively.

In the direction to Central Asia were 7349 trains, which was a number 24.7% larger year on year. The outbound number increased by 28.5%, reaching 4276, while the inbound increased 19.8% to 3037.

The industry insider noted that, the rapid surge in freights toward Central Asia is closely related with the adjustment of the landscape of cargo train operation. From 18:00, April 9, China Railway has arranged 44 routes of Central Asian express, which accepted 4 more routes than the arrangement in the first quarter of the year.

03 Regional Data

Among 28 provinces and municipalities, 

Shaanxi Province ranked first with 3055 trains.

Henan Province was the second with 1522 trains.

Sichuan Province was the third with 1256 trains.

Chongqing City was the fourth with 1239 trains.

Zhejiang Province was the fifth with 1178 trains.

04  Ranking of 6 Borders

In the first half of the year, China's six major border ports stations operated a total of 9310 CR expresses, with a year-on-year decrease of 3.3%. Among them, 4456 trains were operated on the outward journey, with a year-on-year decrease of 16.5%, and 4854 trains were operated on the return journey, with a year-on-year increase of 13.1%.

Alashankou Border ranked first with 3066 trains.

Manzhouli Border was the second with 2193 trains.

Erenhot Border was the third with 2127 trains.

Manufacturing cities lead, characteristic industry boosting the growth of south-western cities

The combination of industrial resources and logistics demands determines the ranking of a city. The tier-one cities stabilize their cargo supplies with manufacturing base, while the south-western cities advance with their characteristic industry.

As a crucial manufacturing base in China, Xi’an boasts its advanced industries in high-end equipment manufacturing, electronic information and car manufacturing. CR Express in Xi’an, one of the busiest international transport hubs in the world, operates 18 international routes on a regular basis, covering the whole Euro-Asian Continent, basically building up important open corridors towards central Asian, southern Asian and western Asian countries.

As a manufacturing hub in central China, Zhengzhou has strong demand for exports of electronic products, large engineering equipment, automobiles, and spare parts. Leveraging the CR Express, the city has strengthened the attraction and aggregation of upstream and downstream industries, promoting the development of distinctive and advantageous industries such as cross-border e-commerce, cold chain processing, automobile trade, and grain processing. At the same time, frequent return trains continuously transport bulk commodities such as fertilizers, mung beans, and flax seeds from Russia, Central Asia, and other regions to China.

Chengdu and Chongqing support each other with trillion-dollar manufacturing clusters. Famous for car and motorcycle industry, Chongqing is one of the greatest car production bases in China. The export demands of enterprises like Changan Automobile and Lifan Motorcycle spur the regular operation of CR Express in Chongqing. According to the data released by Chengdu Border, in the first 5 months of this year, Chengdu's CR Express transported goods worthing 21.17 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 21.6%. The main commodities exported from Chengdu to Europe are automobiles and their spare parts, potassium chloride, rapeseed oil, etc., with the main imported being LCD televisions and their spare parts, automobiles and their spare parts, etc.

Kunming and Yuxi's ranking among the top ten is attributed to the unique industrial position and geographical advantages of the central Yunnan region. Kunming relies on Yunnan's highland specialty agriculture, with fresh products such as flowers and vegetables exported via the CR Express cold chain special train. Meanwhile, Yuxi has diversified its supply sources by expanding exports of agricultural products such as vegetables and fruits.