There are more and more trains destined for Europe going through the Kazakh border point Khorgos. In the first quarter of 2025, it recorded 28,5 per cent more through traffic. The growth follows the implementation of a measure doubling the daily allowed number of trains at border crossings.
A total of 2375 trains passed through Khorgos in Q1 2025, carrying 3,336 million tonnes of freight (+26 per cent). That is a new record for the first quarter of the year.
Rail freight traffic heading west from China is on a growth trend. To accommodate it, Kazakhstan and China agreed to essentially double the maximum amount of freight trains at border crossings. Since 1 March, 15 trains are allowed to pass through Khorgos, and 28 through Dostyk. RailFreight.com has not seen any data on the number of trains going through the latter.
Growth elsewhere
Also when it comes to China – Central Asia traffic, there is notable growth. Around 3600 Chinese trains made their way into Central Asian destinations in the first quarter of 2025, a growth of 25,5 per cent. On the other side of the country, Chinese traffic with Laos expanded. It is up by 10 per cent for a total of 1,513 million tonnes.
Earlier, data from the TITR Middle Corridor association revealed spectacular growth in container traffic. The number of container trains dispatched from China on the corridor grew by 3200 per cent, from 11 in 2023 to 358 in 2024. Kazakh Railways attributed that growth to the operation of the dry port in Xi’an, from where China – Europe trains depart.