Azerbaijan Railways received 416 container block trains from China in the first nine months of 2026, a 40% increase from the same period a year earlier, the state railway company said.
The January-September figure reflects rising freight flows along the east-west route through Azerbaijan, according to a Vesti Baku report.
What a Block Train Does
A container block train carries a large shipment under a coordinated timetable without being broken up and reassembled at intermediate rail yards. That can reduce delays and make long-distance freight movements more predictable.
Azerbaijan is expanding its role in the Middle Corridor, which links China and Central Asia with the Caspian Sea, the South Caucasus, Turkey and European markets. The route combines rail and maritime transport, with cargo transferred across the Caspian before continuing west through Azerbaijan.
Separate industry data showed that Middle Corridor freight reached 53,574 twenty-foot equivalent units in the first eight months of 2026, up 11% from a year earlier. A total of 265 container block trains operated along the corridor during that period, according to ADY Express figures reported by Report.az.
The 416-train count covers block trains received from China and does not mean every train followed the same final route. It nevertheless indicates heavier use of Azerbaijan’s railways and ports as China-Europe cargo volumes diversify across overland corridors.