Freight trains between China and Europe continued its "steady rise" in April despite disruptions on the ground.

Chinese state media said the number of China-Europe freight train trips rose 3% month on month to 1,170.

"The number of trips handled by China-Europe freight trains saw a steady rise in April while maintaining smooth and stable operation," Xinhua said in a report, quoting Meng Wei, spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission.

It added that this marks the "24th consecutive month" for the figure to top 1,000 since the Covid-19 outbreak.

The Chinese official noted that the China-Europe freight train has demonstrated "strong resilience" and played a vital role in stabilizing global industrial and supply chains.

Express delivery volumes rise

In a separate report, the state media also noted that China's courier sector reported a 4.2% rise in its business volume in the first four months of 2022.

Xinhua said the country's delivery service providers handled 31.71 billion parcels in the January-April period, citing data from the Chinese State Post Bureau.

The report said during this period, business revenue of the sector gained 2.3% year on year to total 313.33 billion yuan (US$46.17 billion).

In April alone, Chinese delivery service providers saw their business volume and revenue down 11.9% and 10.1% respectively, from a year ago, it added.