BEIJING — China’s freight volume grew faster in the first six months of 2018, official data showed.

Railways, highways, waterways and airways carried a total of 23.2 billion tonnes of cargo in January-June, up 6.9 percent year-on-year, according to data from Ministry of Transport.

Railway cargo went up 7.7 percent to 2 billion tonnes while highway freight volume also increased 7.7 percent to 18 billion tonnes, the ministry said.

In the first half of this year, cargo throughput at China’s major ports edged up 2.4 percent year- on-year to 6.5 billion tonnes. Cargo throughput for foreign trade grew faster, rising 2.9 percent year-on-year.

China will attempt to increase its railway freight volume by 30 percent, or 1.1 billion tonnes, from 2017 to 2020, while waterborne freight is expected to rise 7.5 percent, or 500 million tonnes.