China's railway freight volume rose 1.8 percent year on year in the first five months of 2026, reaching 1.67 billion tonnes, according to data released Sunday by China State Railway Group Co., Ltd.
The daily average of loaded freight cars stood at 186,300 during the January-May period, up 2.8 percent from the same period last year, the state-owned operator reported.
Export-oriented rail freight showed notably stronger growth. Railways carried 824,000 export commercial vehicles in the five-month period, a 55.5 percent increase year on year. Among those, 422,000 were new energy vehicles, more than doubling from a year earlier with a 110.3 percent rise, the data showed.
International rail corridors also recorded expansion. Cross-border freight services between China and Europe, and between China and other parts of Asia, handled 15,506 trips in the first five months, up 12.6 percent year on year. China-Europe freight trains alone accounted for 9,331 trips, climbing 21 percent from the same period in 2025.
The freight figures follow a separate report from the same operator showing record passenger rail volume of 1.97 billion trips in the January-May period, confirming strong overall demand across China's railway network. Taken together, the passenger and freight data suggest sustained economic activity in the world's second-largest economy during the first half of 2026.
The sharp increase in export vehicle shipments by rail reflects a broader trend of Chinese automakers expanding overseas sales. New energy vehicles, including battery electric and plug-in hybrid models, have been a key driver of China's export growth, with manufacturers such as BYD, SAIC, and Geely ramping up deliveries to markets in Southeast Asia, Europe, and Latin America.
The growth in China-Europe rail traffic also highlights the continued importance of overland trade links between China and European markets. These routes have gained strategic significance as shipping disruptions in the Red Sea and other waterways have prompted some shippers to diversify transport options. China-Europe freight trains now serve more than 200 cities across 25 European countries, according to previous data from the operator.
Rail freight volumes are widely viewed as a proxy for industrial production and domestic trade activity in China. The moderate overall growth rate of 1.8 percent suggests steady but not accelerating goods movement in the economy, consistent with broader indicators of moderate expansion in China's industrial sector.
Sources: gov.cn/SCIO
