On October 3, 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed the concept of jointly building the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road" in Indonesia. Together with the concept of jointly building the "Silk Road Economic Belt" proposed in Kazakhstan in September, it is collectively known as the "Belt and Road Initiative".

Over the past two years, this initiative has sparked enthusiastic responses. As the initiative gradually takes shape, the destinies of numerous countries and billions of people along the route are becoming more intertwined.

To this end, CCTV launched a special report on the Belt and Road Initiative titled "Data Talks about a Community of Shared Future" yesterday, and today broadcast the first episode titled "The Package from afar".

In the opening report "A Package from Afar", from latex pillows in Bangkok, Thailand, to container terminals in Qingdao; from camel caravans on the ancient Silk Road, to the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe freight trains traversing the Eurasian continent, the construction of the Belt and Road is interweaving the destinies of numerous countries and billions of people along the route more closely.

1. The New Silk Road Camel Caravans Without Eating Grass: The Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe Train Over 1,000 years ago, what did Arab merchants on the ancient Silk Road discover? More than 1,000 years later, what changes has the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe Train, the world's longest cross-border train, brought to merchants? Among the countries along the Belt and Road, which has the highest customs clearance efficiency, and which has the slowest? And how does it compare to developed economies? According to the World Bank's statistics in 2015, among the major countries along the Belt and Road, Singapore has the highest import efficiency, taking only 4 days to import a container, while other major trading countries such as India, Russia, and China take about 20 days, and Uzbekistan, the longest, even takes 104 days. The acceleration of trade along the Belt and Road holds great promise.

2. Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe Railway: The New Camel Caravan on the Silk Road More than 1,000 years ago, Arab merchants discovered that camels could save half of the forage compared to mules and horses on the same long journey, making camel caravans the most economical means of transportation on the ancient Silk Road. Nowadays, the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe Railway, which traverses the Eurasian continent, is playing the role of the new camel caravan on the Silk Road.

The Yiwu-Europe freight train departs from Yiwu and exits through Xinjiang, passing through seven countries: Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, France, and Spain. With a total distance of 13,050 kilometers, it is the longest international freight train in the world. Compared to sea transportation, its transportation distance and time are significantly reduced.

Yiwu International Trade City, the world's largest small commodity distribution center. Carlos, a Spanish businessman, is selecting popular styles for this autumn and winter season to be shipped to Madrid. Carlos said that currently, goods are transported by train, and the entire railway transportation time is about 21 days, which is 30% shorter than sea transportation.

Clothing, toys, and electronic products made in China are transported by train to Central Asia and Europe, while European cheese, ham, and red wine travel through this corridor to China, where they are quickly placed on the dining tables of China and even Asia. However, the new journey across the Eurasian continent is not always smooth. Due to the varying widths of railway tracks in the countries along the route, the trains have to undergo three track changes in Kazakhstan, Poland, and the border areas between France and Spain before arriving in Europe. Guo San, Deputy Director of the Alataw Pass Freight Workshop of the Urumqi Railway Bureau, explained that the standard gauge in China is 1435 millimeters wide, while the broad gauge in Kazakhstan is 1520 millimeters wide, with a difference of 8.5 centimeters between the two widths.

Transferring tracks, essentially changing trains, involves using a tower crane to hoist containers from one train onto another. This has become a unique daily routine on the Asia-Europe railway. Throughout the journey, track transfer is actually not the most patiently required part. A container may contain thousands of parcels, and the printed cargo manifest can run to dozens of pages. Carlos, a Spanish businessman, said that policies and document formats vary across the seven countries the train passes through. If the train has to stop for inspection, the entire transportation time will be extended.

In addition, international trade also faces the challenges posed by trade barriers. According to the World Trade Organization, there are over 600 technical barriers to trade reported by major countries along the Belt and Road. This not only increases the logistics costs for shippers, but also, in the case of delayed gifts, may even leave children empty-handed on Christmas Eve.

3. The Belt and Road trade corridor is promising for speeding up. According to the World Bank's statistics in 2015, among the major countries along the Belt and Road, Singapore has the highest import efficiency, with just 4 days required to import a container, while other major trading countries such as India, Russia, and China require around 20 days, and Uzbekistan, the longest, even needs 104 days. The average customs clearance efficiency of countries along the Belt and Road still lags behind that of developed economies.

Currently, a series of international collaborations aimed at facilitating customs clearance are underway. In the next decade, the total trade volume between major countries along the Belt and Road is expected to surpass $10 trillion, and an increasing number of packages and surprises will reach you along this major trade logistics corridor spanning Asia, Europe, and Africa.