Economic Daily App: Global Trade Network Gains a New Route as the World’s First "China-Europe Arctic Express" Launches

In a milestone for global shipping, the Container Ship Istanbul Bridge, laden with over 1,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units), successfully docked at Port of Felixstowe, the United Kingdom’s largest container port, on the evening of October 13 in Felixstowe (corresponding to the early morning of October 14 in Beijing), after traversing the Arctic shipping route. Having set sail from Ningbo-Zhoushan Port on September 23, the arrival marks the official inauguration of the world’s first China-Europe Arctic Express Containership Route.

The launch of this route not only confirms the commercial viability of Arctic passages, offering a new logistics alternative to the global trade network, but also reflects China’s consistent approach to fostering cooperation and sustainable development in Arctic-related affairs. This initiative stands as China’s another contribution toward strengthening the stability of global supply chains.

The China-Europe Arctic Express Route links major Chinese ports - including Ningbo, Shanghai, Qingdao, and Dalian - with key European hubs such as the Port of Felixstowe (UK), the Port of Rotterdam (Netherlands), the Port of Hamburg (Germany), and the Port of Gdańsk (Poland). By crossing the Arctic Ocean, it becomes the fastest containershiproute connecting China with key European hub ports, significantly cutting voyage duration and transit times. According to statistics from Ningbo Customs, the exported goods transported on this inaugural China-Europe Arctic Express Containership Route were valued at approximately 1.4 billion yuan, covering items such as garments, energy storage units, and power batteries.

By comparison, while traditional routes via the Cape of Good Hope take about 50 days, the Suez Canal around 40 days, and the China-Europe Railway Express roughly 25 days, the new China-Europe Arctic Express has slashed the European journey time to just 20 days.The service traverses the Northeast Arctic Passage, an emerging international corridor linking East Asia and Europe that holds major potential for optimizing global supply chains and stimulating trade and economic cooperation along the route.

Source: CCTV Finance

 Disclaimer：The above content is translated from Chinese version of Economic Daily. The Economic Daily version shall prevail.