Rotterdam reflects Europe's changing trade relationship with China

At the Port of Rotterdam, Europe's trade with China spans as far as the eye can see.

Containers are lifted off ships, trucks snake through the terminals, and goods are then moved to warehouses, shops, and factories across the continent.

As Europe's biggest port, Rotterdam has long been a key entry point for Chinese goods into the European market, with Beijing remaining a crucial trading partner.

"China is the decisive factor here in Rotterdam," said Mark Dijk, the manager of external affairs at the department of the Port of Rotterdam.

"We see ourselves as a giant gateway to Europe. If you look at the total number of containers, around seven million, half of them are coming from Asia… sometimes it's an extra stop in Singapore, or another stop, so it's hard to see.

"Our guess is that about half of those containers are coming from China," he added.

It's that huge flow of goods that supports a much wider network, beyond the port itself.

Once containers arrive, logistics companies then store products, repack them, and prepare them for delivery across Europe.

"We handle around 20,000 boxes a year from China at the moment," Dennis de Roo, the founder of Spectre Warehousing and Logistics, based just outside Rotterdam, told CGTN.

But while the economic relationship remains strong, the direction of trade is shifting.

More goods are now arriving from Asia… while exports from Europe to China have fallen from previous years. So, in practical terms, that's more containers coming into Rotterdam, while fewer are leaving the port.

Dijk attributes that shift to changes inside China's own economy.

"It's a structural change. China is now changing its market from a labor-intensive market to a more highly skilled market. And still, the European market is one of the most attractive markets for China because we are still quite rich here. I do hope that the European producers are leveling up and meeting also these new standards of China, so that we get a fair competition and also more balance again in the import and export."

For Rotterdam, that shift matters. Change moves steadily down the line, through shipping companies, road transport operators, and logistics firms that then move goods to the rest of Europe.

It also shows how closely Europe and China connect. Beijing supplies essential everyday products used across Europe, while European companies view China as an important market.

"Every product I have, from my cutlery to my plate to the food which is on my plate, a lot of it, I think 60, 70% comes from China… It's the factory of the world," de Roo told CGTN.

For Rotterdam, China is central to business, but as the trade balance shifts, this port is a visible sign of the dynamic economic flux between Beijing and Europe.