Chinese construction machinery manufacturer Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group shipped 972 units of construction machinery equipment via COSCO Shipping to South America on Tuesday, marking China's biggest single order of machinery exports in the past five years, the company said.

"The delivery event in partnership with COSCO Shipping is of great significance for XCMG and our partners. We overcame the huge difficulty of supply chain maintenance during the COVID-19 pandemic situation, and enhanced global customer confidence," said Lu Chuan, president of XCMG.

XCMG and COSCO Shipping have formed an alliance since XCMG won the bid for a major project in South America in early 2021, but then the manufacturer faced the challenge of delivering all products within a short period of time during the pandemic, due to the restricted global supply chain and sea freight logistics capacity, the company said. COSCO Shipping acted quickly to allocate resources and customized solutions for XCMG to meet the container transportation demand, ensuring timely and orderly shipping.

XCMG's export volume increased by 70 percent year-on-year by the end of the first half of this year. Its products have been sold in 187 countries and regions worldwide, covering 97 percent of countries taking part in the Belt and Road Initiative. XCMG also holds the highest export market share in 30 countries.

A strong global alliance network helps XCMG deliver durable commitment, the company said. In the recent two years, China Railway Transportation Logistics, also one of XCMG's global partners, helped to deliver over 1,000 high cube shipping containers with XCMG's machinery products to European countries via the China-Europe Railway Express.

XCMG has built strategic collaboration platforms overseas and provided strong product and service support, thanks to forming strong alliances with relevant government departments, enterprises, financial institutions and organizations, the company said.