It is called the “new silk road”, and in the coming days it will celebrate its first year of activity. This Eurasian rail line connects Chongqing in China and Duisburg in Germany, passing through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus and Poland. It has been in operation since August 31, 2012, stretching across 11,179 km. This new “silk railroad” saves on average 20 days compared to the traditional sea route, making it ideal for transporting high quality goods that are subject to perishability.
The recent sealing of trade agreements between China and many central-eastern European countries (including many EU member states, from Hungary to Baltic nations) make this Eurasian silk road a piece of infrastructure with enormous potential. To present, Chinese investment in these areas have centred on transport, real estate and infrastructure, seeing expansion mostly in telecommunications.
China is working towards the objective of satisfying increasing internal demand, reducing manufacturing that requires large energy expenditure and qualifying output. Investments in infrastructure account for 1/6 of the total, and the new silk road will be of mutual advantage in trade between China and Europe.
