URUMQI -- A freight train carrying 1,395 tonnes of cotton departed from Aksu railway station in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on Monday, bound for Binzhou city in East China's Shandong province.

Its departure marked the official launch of China's first express cotton freight train service, providing new logistics support for the development of Xinjiang's cotton industry.

Operating at speed of 120 kilometers per hour, the railway uses well-maintained, enhanced-speed carriages and has implemented customized loading plans for each warehouse to ensure the quality of the cotton during transit, according to the China Railway Urumqi Group Co., Ltd.

The new express service makes shipping more convenient for cotton sellers and allows downstream textile enterprises to adjust production flexibly.

Yang Baofu, general manager of the China National Cotton Exchange, said that future plans include increasing the frequency of such trains, and expanding routes to Zhengzhou in central Henan province and Shanghai, which will further reduce logistics costs for the industry chain.