Over the last few years, Urumqi city has become a major freight transfer station, exporting Chinese goods to the West and Central Asian countries.

The city's train station has five dedicated rail lines for freight trains and can deliver a maximum of 1, 890 container cars, 3,780 containers and over 56,000 tons of cargo.

By the end of 2014, the West Railway Station has operated 48 western-oriented trains with a total of 2218 carriages, transferring a total of 66,500 tons of goods, according to Urumqi's customs.

Exported goods include such things as automobile parts, construction and building materials, general merchandise and garments.

According to a customs officer, the West Railway Station's freight center, which covers 9.73 hectares of land, is the only freight depot servicing freight trains bound for the western and Central Asian countries. The center has a separate dedicated storage area for export goods and customs officials carry out strict inspections before westward-bound trains leave.