Cargo is being loaded onto a plane at the airport in Urumqi, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on August 15, 2024, ahead of its departure for Budapest, capital of Hungary. Photo: VCG

Chinese carriers are increasing their footprint in the EU in terms of cargo and passenger flights amid growing economic and trade cooperation between the two sides.

On Sunday, a cargo plane loaded with 49 tons of cross-border e-commerce goods departed Urumqi Tianshan International Airport in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region for Zurich, Switzerland, marking the official opening of an international cargo route from Urumqi to Zurich, chinanews.cn reported on Monday. 

The route will pass through Tashkent, Uzbekistan and is scheduled to operate once a week. The opening of this cargo route provides strong support for foreign trade companies to expand the China-EU market and builds a new "air bridge" for trade between China and Europe, the report said. 

In the past, the transportation of goods to Central European countries required multiple transfers, which took a longer time and posed high transportation risks. The opening of this route has improved transportation efficiency and reduced logistics costs, Feng Liang, who is responsible for a supply chain company in Xinjiang, was quoted by the report as saying. 

On Saturday, a Boeing 757-200 freighter loaded with 24.7 tons of cross-border e-commerce goods took off smoothly from Urumqi Tianshan International Airport and arrived in Belgrade, capital of Serbia, the start of an official cargo route that takes only 10 hours, local news outlet xjtvs.com.cn reported on Sunday.

Besides cargo, Chinese airlines are ramping up efforts to start passenger travel between China and the EU.

China Eastern Airlines said that it will launch several new European routes, including the Shanghai Pudong to Geneva route on June 16, the Shanghai Pudong to Milan route on June 20, and the Shanghai Pudong to Copenhagen route on July 17.

From April 11 to May 11, the number of passenger flights from the Chinese mainland to Europe exceeded 3,200, an increase of about 23 percent over the same period last year, according to data from Chinese industry information provider Umetrip.

The frequent flights come amid growing bilateral trade between China and the EU. The EU was China's second-largest trading partner, with bilateral trade topping 1.78 trillion yuan ($246.4 billion) in the first four months of 2025, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs on Friday.

Asked to comment on China-EU economic and trade issues at a regular press briefing on Monday, Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the EU, and over the past 50 years, the interaction and dialogue between China and the EU have become increasingly close, with continuously deepened convergence of interest, significant enhancement in the scale and level of cooperation, and effective multilateral coordination.

"Facts have proven that China and Europe have helped each other succeed and achieved common development. The China-EU Comprehensive Strategic Partnership has not only brought tangible benefits to the nearly 2 billion people in China and Europe but also set a fine example for mutually beneficial cooperation in the era of economic globalization," Lin said.