The first Helsinki-Qingdao Eurasian freight train returned to the Qingdao multimodal transportation center on April 6, as Qilu Eurasian freight trains have expanded service to the Nordic region, local media reported.

The first Helsinki-Qingdao Eurasian freight train returns to the Qingdao multimodal transportation center on April 6. [Photo/dzwww.com]

Qilu Eurasian freight trains, which are operated by Shandong Hi-Speed Group, made 380 trips in the first quarter of the year, up 27.1 percent year-on-year, and carried about 31,100 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of goods, up 25.8 percent year-on-year.

In order to build efficient, low-cost international trade channels with good services, a new express train line has been opened from Shandong province to Azerbaijan and Finland, and the rail service network has been extended to Britain through a sea-rail intermodal transport system, according to Shandong Hi-Speed Group.

The Qilu Eurasian freight train service currently has 46 inter-city routes to 49 cities in 19 countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

In addition, the Qilu Eurasian freight trains have offered special services to large import and export enterprises in Shandong province in a bid to stabilize the supply chain.

This year, a total of 21 customized freight trains for Haier, Hisense, Shandong Lingong Construction Machinery Co Ltd (SDLG), and other enterprises were launched, a year-on-year growth of 90.9 percent.