China's Foreign Trade Maintains Resilience Amid Complex Global Situation

China's foreign trade maintained strong resilience in the first half of this year, achieving total growth, quality improvement, and controllable variables, according to a recent report by the State Council of the People's Republic of China.

The report highlights that in the first half of the year, China's import and export of goods reached 21.79 trillion yuan, up 2.9% year-on-year, with a growth rate 0.4 percentage points faster than the previous five months. The export scale exceeded 13 trillion yuan for the first time in the same period in history, achieving a rapid growth of 7.2% year-on-year. At the same time, imports reached 8.79 trillion yuan, down 2.7% year-on-year, but the decline narrowed by 1.1 percentage points compared with the previous five months.

Key Takeaways:

• The report highlights that China's foreign trade has maintained strong resilience in the face of a complex and severe international situation, achieving total growth, quality improvement, and controllable variables.
• The import and export volume stood at a record high of 20 trillion yuan for the same period in history, with a year-on-year growth of over 600 billion yuan compared to the first half of last year.
• The export of mechanical and electrical products was 7.8 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 9.5%, accounting for 60% of the total export value.
• High-end equipment closely related to new quality productivity increased by more than 20%, and the "new three" products representing green and low-carbon increased by 12.7%.
• China's imports and exports to more than 190 countries and regions increased, and the number of partners with a trade volume of more than 50 billion yuan reached 61, an increase of 5 from the same period last year.
• Emerging markets such as Africa and Central Asia contributed more growth, with imports and exports to these regions increasing by 14.4% and 13.8% year-on-year respectively.
• The fluctuations in China's import growth were due to multiple factors such as uncertainty in international trade policies and falling commodity prices.
• China-US trade has faced tremendous pressure, with a year-on-year decrease of 9.3% in the first half of the year due to the so-called "reciprocal tariffs" of the United States.
• The economic and trade talks in Geneva and London have made positive progress, and Sino-US trade has rebounded, with the import and export value in June rebounding from less than 300 billion yuan in May to more than 350 billion yuan.

Statistics:

• Total import and export value in the first half of the year: 21.79 trillion yuan
• Year-on-year growth rate: 2.9%
• Export scale: 13 trillion yuan
• Year-on-year growth rate of export: 7.2%
• Import volume: 8.79 trillion yuan
• Year-on-year decline rate of import: 2.7%
• Number of partners with a trade volume of more than 50 billion yuan: 61 (an increase of 5 from the same period last year)
• Trade growth in Africa: 14.4% year-on-year
• Trade growth in Central Asia: 13.8% year-on-year
• China-US trade growth in the first half of the year: -9.3%
• Import and export value in June: over 350 billion yuan

Sources:

• Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, July 14th, Title: Total growth, quality improvement, controllable variables - three dimensions to decode China's foreign trade semi-annual report
• State Council of the People's Republic of China
• General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China