China lets market decide freight prices

China is to allow the market to decide rail freight prices, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said Tuesday.

Freight prices on the Zhunchi Railway, linking Inner-Mongolia Autonomous Region and Shanxi Province in North China, will be determined independently by operators, customers and investors, said the NDRC in a statement.

This is the first time China has opened up prices of rail transportation. The 180-kilometer railway, which is under construction and scheduled to begin operations in the first half of this year, will mainly carry coal, the NDRC said.