Russian Railways is showing steady growth in freight traffic with China and may end 2025 with a new historical high. According to the presentation by Sergey Pavlov, First Deputy General Director of Russian Railways, in the first ten months of 2025, the volume of traffic on the Chinese route reached 155 million tons, which is 6.9% more than in the same period last year. This pace already makes it possible to predict exceeding the record results of 2024, when the total volume exceeded 175 million tons.
Exports provided the main contribution to the growth: shipments from Russia increased from 122 to 135 million tons. Imports remained at the same level of 15 million tons, while transit traffic decreased from 8 to 5 million tons due to congestion at border crossings and the changed route structure. Despite this, the overall direction continues to grow due to stable demand for Russian raw materials and the expansion of Chinese contract programs.
At the same time, shipments to other friendly countries are also growing. According to Russian Railways, in January–October 2025, their total volume reached 306 million tons, an increase of 2.9% year-on-year. Industry forums emphasize that the main task for the coming years will be to ensure a stable infrastructure capacity and a balance between export flows and domestic logistics needs.
At the same time, the company recognizes that the summer months traditionally lead to a decrease in efficiency due to the large number of travel work. In the spring of 2025, Russian Railways predicted an 8% increase in transportation with China by the end of the year, and the current dynamics confirms the realism of these expectations. Strengthening the Eastern corridor remains a strategic priority, as the Chinese market shows stable demand, and infrastructure projects — from upgrading approaches to ports to increasing capacity at docking stations — continue to expand export logistics capabilities.
