Shipping continues to navigate COVID-19 post-pandemic trends, the legacies of the 2021–2022 crunch in global supply chains, a softening in the container shipping market and shifts in shipping and trading patterns arising from the conflict in Ukraine.

The China-Europe Railway Express, or China Railway Express (CRE), is key logistical cog in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative. It provides an alternative to container shipping for transporting Chinese manufactured goods to Europe via Russia.