A new freight train service was launched on July 29, linking Wuhan, capital city of Hubei Province with Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

  The train, loaded with 840 tons of textiles, household appliances and other products worth 2 million U.S. dollars, will arrive in Tashkent after 15 days, marking another outbound train linking Wuhan and the central Asian country.

  Compared with traditional transportation, direct freight trains can reduce transport time by 6 to 8 days, which saves logistics and time costs for enterprises.

  "Central Asian countries are abundant in agricultural products and mineral resources, with strong demand for subsistence consumption. The train will achieve complementarities between the two places," said Wang Wei,  chairman of China Railway Modern Logistics Technology Co., Ltd.

  Five Central Asian countries are the main members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The SCO non-governmental friendship forum was held in Wuhan on June 3. The launching of Wuhan-Tashkent freight rail route marks another achievement in deepening cooperation between Wuhan and the SCO member countries.

  (Source: en.hubei.gov.cn)