According to reports from Qingdao Daily and The Paper: High-temperature heat waves in Europe since July have boosted demand for air conditioners and refrigerators, and orders have continued to flow to Chinese companies. At the SCO Demonstration Zone Multimodal Transport Center (China Railway Intercity Qingdao Central Station), Shandong China-Europe freight trains loaded with refrigerators, air conditioners and other home appliances departed through ports such as Alashankou and Manzhouli, and went directly to Kazakhstan, Russia and other SCO member states and countries along the "Belt and Road" line - trains from Jiaozhou can reach Europe in the fastest 15 days, which is about half a month to a month shorter than traditional sea transportation.
"Made in Qingdao" exports of cooling home appliances hit new high
In the first half of 2026, Qingdao's export value of cooling home appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators, and fans was 8.69 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 11.3%; of which exports in the second quarter were 4.62 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 23.8%, a record high. In July, Haier's air-conditioning Jiaozhou Interconnection Factory urgently delivered more than 70,000 European orders in just over 10 days; Haier Refrigerators' Shanghai Interconnection No. 2 Factory was responsible for half of the production capacity of export refrigerators. In the second quarter, export orders increased by 38% year-on-year.
Supply chain train: the “golden channel” for overseas companies
Shandong China-Europe Railway Express launched a special train for the home appliance supply chain, implementing the three priority guarantees of "space priority, marshalling priority, and customs clearance priority"; in the first half of the year, 7,118 TEUs of home appliance export goods were transported through the Shanghai Cooperation Demonstration Zone, a year-on-year increase of 62.9%. A total of more than 600 supply chain special trains have been operated, serving more than 7,000 foreign trade companies. Home appliances can be "expressed" to the sea, and furniture and building materials can also use this channel to directly reach the Central Asia market.
Source of information: Qingdao Daily/Qilu.com (2026-08-16), The Paper (2026-08-16), Jinjiaozhou Digital News and other public reports.
Connect with Central Asia overseas resources Consult Qingdao Furniture Association