A China-Europe (Qilu) freight train carrying 1,040 metric tons of barley departs the first overseas assembly center in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Sept 3. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The China-Europe (Qilu) freight train's first overseas assembly center was established in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Sept 3.

That same day, a train carrying 1,040 metric tons of barley departed from the overseas assembly center for Jinan. This was the 1,747th China-Europe (Qilu) freight train trip this year.

According to Wang Qifeng, chairman of the group, the launching of the overseas assembly center is part of efforts by the Shandong Hi-Speed Group to further contribute to the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The assembly center provides comprehensive logistics services, including warehousing, customs clearance, bonded services, and supply chain management, said Zhang Yangjin, chairman of Shandong High-speed Qilu Eurasia Railway Logistics Co.

"By achieving full logistics control, we can collaborate with financial institutions to provide supply chain finance services to customers, thus providing an efficient and convenient logistics channel for trade and economic exchanges between Shandong and Central Asian countries," Zhang added.

Since October 2018, 3,707 trains have plied the China-Europe (Qilu) freight route between Shandong and five Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan.

In 2022 alone, the import and export value generated by railway transportation was 12.97 billion yuan ($1.79 billion), accounting for 57.7 percent of the total between Shandong and the five Central Asian countries.

"This year marks the 10th anniversary of the proposal of the BRI. We will take the establishment of the assembly center as an opportunity to further enhance the international logistics corridor connecting Central Asia, promote trade cooperation between Shandong and Central Asia in a larger scope, broader fields, and higher levels," said Wang.