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Land transportation
China’s freight railways remain on a steady growth trajectory. Between January and May of 2026, they moved 1.67 billion tonnes of goods, a year-on-year growth of 1.8%. By comparison: German rail freight moved 327 million tonnes in all of 2025. China clearly transports gigantic amounts of freight via rail, but cars are a notable source of growth.
The Chinese state publication Xinhua reports that the national railways transported 824,000 commercial vehicles for export between January and May 2026. This amounts to a growth of 55.5% compared to the same period in 2025.
If that seems impressive, then the growth rate in the electric vehicles segment is even more remarkable. Out of those 824,000 vehicles, 422,000 were new energy vehicles, for a growth percentage of 110.3% compared to January–May 2025.
Production for the outside world
The explosive growth of electric vehicles (EVs) transported on the Chinese rail network follows the rapid expansion of China’s automotive industry paired with weak domestic demand. In 2024, the country’s automotive sector accounted for approximately 30% of the 80 million vehicles manufactured globally, according to automotive news publication AMS. China is now exporting many of those vehicles.
China’s vehicle output was more than double that of the United States. Germany produced around 4 million cars in 2025, according to the German automotive industry association VDA.
Beyond automotive transportation, China reports a stable performance of international rail freight in a broader sense too. Rail freight connections with Europe and other parts of Asia handled 15,506 trips in the first five months of 2026 (+12.6% year-on-year). Among them, China–Europe freight services operated 9,331 trips, up 21% from a year earlier.