The first freight train to run from Britain to China was due to depart yesterday, carrying vitamins, baby products and other goods as Britain seeks to burnish its global trading credentials for when it leaves the EU.
The 12,000km journey from eastern England to eastern China is to take three weeks, about half the time needed for the equivalent journey by boat.
The first freight train from China arrived in Britain in January.
Photo: EPA
The train is to leave a depot at Stanford-Le-Hope in Essex for Barking in east London, before passing through the Channel Tunnel into France and on to Belgium, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan.
Britain is seeking to enhance its trade links with the rest of the world as it prepares to leave the EU in two years’ time.
“This new rail link with China is another boost for global Britain, following the ancient Silk Road trade route to carry British products around the world,” British Minister of State for Trade and Investment Greg Hands said.
Run by Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment, the Yiwu-London freight service makes London the 15th European city to have a direct rail link with China after the 2013 unveiling of the “One Belt, One Road” initiative by Chinese premier Xi Jinping (習近平).
Among the goods being transported to China are soft drinks, vitamins, pharmaceuticals and baby products.
“This is the first export train and just the start of a regular direct service between the UK and China,” Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment Co chairman Xubin Feng said. “We have great faith in the UK as an export nation and rail provides an excellent alternative for moving large volumes of goods over long distances faster.”
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