This aerial photo taken on April 28, 2023 shows a China-Europe freight train pulling out from the China-Kazakhstan (Lianyungang) logistics cooperation base in Lianyungang, east China's Jiangsu Province. (Photo by Wang Jianmin/Xinhua)

East China's economic powerhouse Jiangsu Province launched 652 China-Europe freight train trips in the first quarter of 2024, marking a year-on-year surge of 24.9 percent, local authorities said Friday.

In March alone, the province launched 222 China-Europe freight trains, a record high in a single month.

During the first quarter, the trains carried a total of 52,870 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of goods, and the number of inbound and outbound trains increased by 10.5 percent and 36.8 percent year on year, respectively.

Notably, the number of China-Europe freight trains launched by the city of Lianyungang during the period increased by 40.1 percent year on year, thanks to the construction of a rail-sea intermodal transport channel linking East Asia and Europe.

Jiangsu has integrated its freight train services with comprehensive bonded zone services to cut costs for enterprises. Measures including flexible management of containers and improved end-to-end services will continue to benefit foreign trade enterprises, according to the provincial department of transportation.