The "Qingdao" freight train heading to Central Asia sets off from the central station of CRIntermodal in Qingdao, a coastal city in east China's Shandong Province, May 7, 2018. China's rail freight volume, an indicator of broad economic activity, rose 9.1 percent year on year in 2018, according to the China Railway Corporation. Railways carried 4.02 billion tonnes of freight last year, 334 million tonnes more than the previous year, data from the company showed. (Xinhua/Guo Xulei)