On December 17, the AICC Huanghu ro-ro ship was navigating the Strait of Malacca, with an expected return to China by the end of December, marking its fifth return trip of the year. In November 2025, Anhui Province became the first province in China to achieve annual automobile exports exceeding one million units. It is truly a milestone moment. Just five years ago, China’s total annual automobile exports were less than one million vehicles in 2020.

In Shanghai, the destination of Huanghu this trip, another ship bearing the same name –Huanghu—docked and eventually corroded on the banks of the Huangpu River over a century ago. It is a tale of a ship’s revival, a vivid real-world “time-travel drama” and a story of China’s vehicles and vessels that bears witness to a tremendous transformation.

(Plan/Text: Hu Xu, Feng Jing; Video: Feng Jing, Wang Ke, Li Bo, Gu Yifei, Lin Hai; Graphic Design: Gan Liang; Technical Support: Cai Hanling; Coordination: Hu Xu, Xia Lixia)