HANGZHOU — An all-cargo air route linking Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, and Spain's Madrid was launched on Aug 13.

The route, operated three times a week by Air China Cargo, is expected to more than half the shipping time of foreign trade commodities to about 10 days.

Xiong Wei with Cainiao Network, the logistics arm of Alibaba Group, said the new route allows low-cost small commodities like mobile phone cases and toilet covers to be shipped via charter flights, thus providing a new export channel for small and medium-sized businesses.

Statistics show that China currently is Spain's largest trading partner outside the European Union (EU), while Spain is China's sixth largest trading partner within the EU bloc.