DHL Global Forwarding has launched a rail connection between Shenzhen and Minsk as part of its Asia-Europe multimodal network.

According to DHL, it will manage the route together with China Brilliant, an integrated service provider in manufacturing and consumption with which DHL signed an MoU last year. DHL will offer both less-than-container load and full-container load options, aimed particularly at the electronics, industrial, automotive and fresh food sectors in China and Eastern Europe.

“Eastern Europe’s economies are growing faster than almost any others worldwide, with significant export opportunities arising from the region’s rising wages and disposable income levels,” said Steve Huang, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Greater China. “Minsk offers Chinese businesses an efficient gateway into the Baltic States and Nordic countries in addition to other major European destinations like Warsaw, Hamburg and Tilburg via Brest. With Shenzhen’s economy exceeding expectations to grow by 9% last year, the route also opens sizable opportunities for European exporters looking to sell to one of China’s most vibrant trade and business hubs, or use it as an important gateway to Southeast Asia and the rest of the Chinese consumer market. Our newest route further supports strategic infrastructure projects designed especially to support the Belt and Road, such as the Great Stone Industrial Park – the largest joint project between China and Belarus that will span decades; strengthens bilateral ties between the two countries; and also lays the groundwork for further rail connectivity to the Nordic and Middle Eastern states involved in the Belt and Road.”

The new route will cross the China-Kazakhstan border at the Alashankou-Dostyk rail juncture, which also handles rail connections from Chengdu, Zhengzhou and Lianyungang to continental Europe. DHL will offer customers of the new service real-time GPS tracking of containers and fully managed customs clearance for the entire journey.

“Trade growth between China and Belarus shows no signs of slowing down, and we are excited to be partnering with DHL to further streamline freight connections between both countries,” said Chunhua Zhang, founder of China Brilliant Group. “The partnerships that DHL has with governments and businesses globally, coupled with our market strength in Shenzhen-based supply chains, have come together to create a solution that directly meets the needs of China's expansion-hungry manufacturers and producers.”