A vessel loaded with over 30,000 tons of energy storage cabins, machinery vehicles and other equipment departs from Zhangjiagang in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province on September 18, 2025 to head for Chancay Port in Peru. Photo: VCG

China's first direct shipping route to the Chancay Port in Peru, the sea line connecting Zhangjiagang Port in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province with Chancay, has handled more than 50,000 tons of cargo since the Peruvian port officially opened one year ago, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Sunday.

Cargo transported via the route has reached 52,000 tons, mainly consisting of automobiles, construction machinery and grinding balls, customs authorities told CCTV. The launch of the route has significantly improved logistics efficiency, shortening sea transit time from 35 days to 23 days.

The Suzhou-Chancay route has become an increasingly important artery for Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) trade exchanges, injecting strong momentum into high-quality foreign trade growth across the region, the report noted.

The sustained growth indicates that even amid rising trade protectionism, the route's role as a logistics hub continues to expand, clearly demonstrating the resilience and diversification of China's foreign trade, Song Ding, a research fellow at the China Development Institute, told the Global Times on Sunday.

Song noted that the route strengthens two-way interaction between advanced manufacturing bases in China's Yangtze River Delta and Latin America's resource-intensive industries. "It creates a more complementary industrial cycle, and has the potential to upgrade regional cooperation from simple cargo exchange to deeper industrial integration," he said.

The sea line's rapid development follows a milestone earlier this year. On September 12, a fast cargo shipping route from Zhangjiagang Port to Chancay Port opened, marking the launch of China's first direct general cargo liner service to the Peruvian port, Xinhua News Agency reported, citing port authorities in Suzhou.

The express liner service, operated by Cosco Shipping Specialized Carriers, runs once a month. The route's flexible, multi-purpose ship configuration can meet the export needs of goods such as grinding balls and engineering vehicles, and support the import requirements of bulk commodities such as copper concentrate and iron ore, according to Xinhua.

With the new route in place, Suzhou is expected to ship about 500,000 revenue tons of general cargo annually to the west coast of Central and South America, providing efficient "door-to-port" logistics services for companies in Suzhou and the broader Yangtze River Delta, and further improving the maritime network that supports BRI cooperation, Xinhua reported.

Song said that the continued expansion of the corridor centered on Chancay Port "will help anchor long-term China-Latin America connectivity amid global supply-chain restructuring, helping both sides enhance their economic resilience."

Chancay Port is a major flagship project jointly developed by China and Peru under the BRI. In November 2024, Chancay launched operations in coordination with Suzhou Port, with the first incoming vessel arriving from Suzhou, according to the Suzhou Daily.

In March, Suzhou and Chancay signed a sister-port agreement, pledging to jointly encourage shipping companies to operate services between the two ports and to build a low-cost, efficient and green maritime logistics corridor.

To date, the route from Suzhou to Chancay has completed five sailings, delivering about 26,000 tons of cargo, official data showed. During the first eight months this year, Taicang Port's exports to Peru exceeded 800 million yuan ($113 million), more than doubling year-on-year, mainly consisting of engineering machinery such as cranes and dump trucks, the Suzhou Daily reported.

As a flagship BRI cooperation project between China and Peru, Chancay Port marked its first anniversary on November 14. Over the past year, three main lines and four branch routes centered on Chancay have been launched, with foreign trade surpassing $1 billion, according to the Ministry of Transport of China.