(Yicai) July 16 -- The first regular cargo route between Shanghai and Budapest operated by a Chinese airline opened today.

Flight CK201, operated by China Eastern Airlines’ subsidiary China Cargo Airlines, took off from Shanghai Pudong International Airport with 89 tons of cargo today and will arrive at Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport after about 12 hours, The Paper reported.

Scheduled to run three times a week, the Shanghai-Budapest cargo route aims to facilitate economic and trade exchanges between China and Hungary. Eighty percent of the cargo to Hungary will be cross-border e-commerce goods, while most cargo to China will be auto parts and fresh foods.

China Cargo Airlines now has four cargo routes to Europe to Amsterdam, Budapest, Frankfurt, and London for a total of 48 round-trips a week. Moreover, China Eastern offers logistics services from China to Budapest through the cargo compartment of its passenger aircraft.

Budapest boasts a strategic position in Europe. Logistics trucks from the city can reach Central and East Europe in six to 12 hours and any location around the continent in under 24 hours.

China is Hungary’s largest trading partner outside Europe. According to data from China Customs, the bilateral trade volume of goods between the two countries exceeded USD14.5 billion last year, up 42 percent from 2019.

Editor: Futura Costaglione