The Chinese Lunar New Year is approaching, and the Fudi Port in Hamburg, Germany is bustling with activity. A batch of cargo ships from China will arrive one after another before and after the Spring Festival, and most of them are fully loaded. This is also a small peak in freight transportation, "Lin Zhengxi, General Manager of COSCO Shipping Germany, told our reporter. As one of the most important logistics gateways connecting China and the hinterland of Europe, Hamburg Port is the core gateway for Germany's trade with China, with about 40% of Germany's trade with China (by tonnage) completed through Hamburg Port. China is the largest and most important trading partner of Hamburg Port, "Matthias Schulz, Media Director of Hamburg Port Marketing Association, told our reporter. German Chinese trade has continued to grow in recent years. In the first nine months of 2025, Hamburg Port's German intermediate container trade increased by 7.9% year-on-year, reaching 1.8 million TEUs. As one of the four major ports of Hamburg Port, Fudi Port is the starting point for cooperation between Hamburg and COSCO Shipping, and it is also very reassuring to celebrate the Spring Festival at sea. In 1982, the first liner from China anchored here. For over 40 years, the port has witnessed the long-term and stable mutual trust and cooperation between China and Germany. In 2023, COSCO Shipping Germany officially acquired 24.99% equity of Fudi Port. In Schultz's view, equity cooperation at the port level has achieved a typical mutually beneficial structure: Hamburg Port obtains stable and predictable cargo flow, while COSCO Shipping obtains reliable berth resources, loading and unloading capabilities, and operational guarantees in the region, thereby improving route scheduling efficiency and enhancing supply chain resilience. Standing at a high point on the dock, the reporter was able to take a panoramic view of the dock: far away, the cargo ships anchored at the dock were busy loading and unloading gantry cranes and floating cranes, and nearby were container trucks and trucks (see picture, taken by our reporter Liu Zhonghua). Containers transported by sea and China Europe freight trains are sent from here to various parts of Europe. Vice President of Fudi Wharf, Lu Zhou, is about to spend his second Spring Festival here. During the Spring Festival, we will continue to work as usual, mainly focusing on providing good services to relevant shipping companies around dock resources, as well as warehouse area management, cargo collection, etc. "Lu Zhou said that 60% of the goods here are transported by COSCO Shipping. Arriving at the dock, a cross loading truck had just lowered the container when the gantry crane dropped from high altitude and loaded it onto the "Sagittarius" cargo ship capable of transporting 22000 TEUs. The cargo ship transports Chinese lithium batteries, photovoltaic modules, chemicals, fast-moving consumer goods, household appliances, etc. to Europe, and then transports goods such as automotive parts, ship propellers, mechanical equipment, etc. back to China. The most special goods on board are four sets of Airbus aircraft fuselage and wings, which will be transported to Tianjin for assembly. Boarding the Sagittarius cargo ship, Spring Festival couplets were posted at the cabin door, and Chinese knots were hung inside the cabin, adding a lot of youthful charm to the ship. Captain Zhang Jianyong is born in the 1970s and has been sailing for over 30 years. He can no longer remember how many Spring Festivals he has spent at sea. At the port of Hamburg, the stationed company provided fresh vegetables and fruits to the ship, and also supported us in dealing with the difficulties encountered during the voyage, which made us feel warm, "said Zhang Jianyong. He used to write a letter to his wife outside, but the letter had not yet arrived when he arrived home. Now with the internet on board, even in the depths of the ocean, you can video chat with your family at any time. "We celebrate the Spring Festival at sea and feel at ease!" "We strive to open up new paths and provide more efficient and stable full process supply chain services." COSCO Shipping Germany is located in Hamburg Port New City, not far from the port and Hamburg landmark "Warehouse City". As the Chinese New Year approaches, the work pace here remains tense. Several Chinese employees have been bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new in their overseas work positions for several consecutive years. On August 25, 2025, a direct railway train carrying goods such as car parts and mechanical parts departed from the port of Zeebrugge in Bruges, Belgium to the German city of Mannheim, marking the official opening of the "Zeebrugge Mannheim" direct railway train. China COSCO Shipping Germany has leveraged its integrated advantages of "shipping+port+logistics", established and improved channels, hubs, and networks, and created a green logistics corridor that links the gateway of Northwest Europe with the industrial hinterland of western Germany. At present, this new route continues to operate smoothly, and this year we strive to increase the frequency of flights from two per week to one per day. We are vigorously developing end-to-end full chain services to promote the improvement and efficiency of the entire supply chain, "said Lin Zhengxi. Compared with the traditional barge model that travels along the Rhine River, the delivery time has been shortened from 5 to 6 days to 13 hours, greatly reducing time costs. In addition to opening up new routes, COSCO Shipping Germany has also utilized its port advantages to activate the flexibility of inland transportation, and opened up the cold chain transportation market to transport products such as salmon, pharmaceuticals, dairy products, fruits and vegetables. We are working hard on ourselves to open up new paths and provide more efficient and stable full process supply chain services, "said Lin Zhengxi. Unlike traditional liner shipping, today COSCO Shipping extends its services to Chinese and European enterprises to the land end, providing a" point-to-point "comprehensive logistics transportation solution. China COSCO Shipping is committed to building a world-class shipping technology enterprise, and has come to Europe to better serve our partners who have a demand for us. ”Fu Xiangyang, Chairman of COSCO Shipping (Europe) Co., Ltd., introduced that currently COSCO Shipping has more than 3500 employees in Europe, including more than 100 Chinese employees. Around the five major hubs in Europe, namely Piraeus Port in Greece, Valencia Port in Spain, Zeebrugge Port in Belgium, Duisburg in Germany, and Budapest in Hungary, COSCO Shipping is investing more resources to build warehouses, lay channels, etc., in order to gradually achieve end-to-end full chain product services. At the same time, focusing on the demand of regional segmented markets, COSCO Shipping has also created sub brands such as Land Sea Express, Diamond Express, and Crystal Logistics to cover the pain points of different customer groups. China is a trustworthy partner, and such cooperation is particularly valuable at present, "said Sebastian, a 41 year old native of Hamburg who has worked at COSCO Shipping for nearly 20 years and now serves as the assistant general manager of COSCO Shipping Germany. The port is the economic heart of Hamburg, and COSCO Shipping has made this' heart 'strong and interconnected with the world, "Sebastian said. Establishing strategic partnerships with Chinese companies has enhanced Hamburg's competitiveness as an international port. Bjorn Rongdeshaan has also worked at COSCO Shipping for many years as a bidding and strategic account manager for COSCO Shipping (Europe) Limited. COSCO Shipping is not only our employer, but also a contributor to the development of Hamburg and Germany, "said Rongdeshan. Jens Baar works at Deutsche Bahn Logistics GmbH in Germany and has long-term cooperation with COSCO Shipping. COSCO Shipping has good shipping routes, excellent service, and takes every order seriously, which is trustworthy, "said Barr. The Hamburg Port Authority believes that cooperation with COSCO Shipping strengthens Hamburg's hub function and enhances regional shipping competitiveness. China is a trustworthy partner, and such cooperation is particularly valuable at present, "Schultz said. Chinese companies have long regarded Hamburg as a key pivot for European business, providing a structural foundation for continued deepening and industrial embedding of cooperation between the two sides. In the future, there is room for further deepening cooperation between the two sides in the fields of green shipping, digital ports, and supply chain efficiency. The Spring Festival of the Year of the Horse is approaching, and Sebastian and Rongdeshaan plan to celebrate it with their Chinese colleagues. In Sebastian's view, the Spring Festival focuses on the cohesion and maintenance of relationships between people, emphasizing the creation of a harmonious and stable atmosphere. This wisdom has important implications for today's world. Chinese companies have brought us a unique cultural atmosphere, which has deepened our understanding of China, "Sebastian said. (New Society)