The Chinese market offers tremendous opportunities for the global economy.

According to customs statistics, in the first half of this year, my country's total import and export of goods reached 25.47 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 16.9%; imports and exports by foreign-invested enterprises reached 7.39 trillion yuan, an increase of 17.1%, marking the ninth consecutive quarter of growth; imports and exports with countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative reached 12.97 trillion yuan, an increase of 14.8%, accounting for 50.9% of total foreign trade; and agricultural product imports reached 768.48 billion yuan, an increase of 8.6%... These steadily rising figures demonstrate the robust growth of my country's goods trade. "Since the beginning of this year, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, my country has adhered to the general principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability, accelerated the construction of a new development pattern, and maintained a resilient and positive economic performance, with strong and stable growth in foreign trade," said Wang Jun, Deputy Director of the General Administration of Customs, at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on July 14, introducing the import and export situation in the first half of this year.

Significant Achievements in Stabilizing Scale and Optimizing Structure

According to customs statistics, in the first half of this year, my country's goods trade exports reached 14.73 trillion yuan, an increase of 13.4%, while imports reached 10.74 trillion yuan, an increase of 22.1%. Wang Jun introduced six main characteristics of my country's goods trade imports and exports: First, the growth rate of imports and exports accelerated. In the second quarter, imports and exports reached 13.61 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.4%, the highest quarterly year-on-year growth rate since the third quarter of 2021. In June alone, imports and exports reached 4.78 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 24.2%, maintaining growth for 17 consecutive months.

Second, diversified markets continued to consolidate. In the first half of the year, my country's imports and exports to countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative reached 12.97 trillion yuan, an increase of 14.8%, accounting for 50.9% of the total foreign trade value. Imports and exports to neighboring countries reached 9.44 trillion yuan, an increase of 20.6%. Imports and exports to Latin America and Africa increased by 16.2% and 19.6% respectively, while imports and exports to the EU increased by 10.2%.

Third, various business entities maintained good growth momentum. In the first half of the year, my country's private enterprises' imports and exports reached 14.53 trillion yuan, a 17% increase, accounting for 57% of the total foreign trade value; foreign-invested enterprises' imports and exports reached 7.39 trillion yuan, a 17.1% increase; and state-owned enterprises' imports and exports reached 3.5 trillion yuan, a 16.8% increase.

Fourth, all regions achieved growth in imports and exports. In the first half of the year, the eastern region's imports and exports exceeded 20 trillion yuan, a 16.5% increase, accounting for 78.8% of the total foreign trade value. The western, central, and northeastern regions grew by 20.3%, 20%, and 8.6%, respectively.

Fifth, the export product structure was further optimized. In the first half of the year, my country's exports of electromechanical products reached 9.36 trillion yuan, a 20.1% increase, accounting for 63.5% of the total exports, an increase of 3.5 percentage points compared to the same period last year. Exports of high-tech products reached 3.26 trillion yuan, a 39% increase. Exports of domestically branded products increased by 25.4%, with their share increasing by 2.4 percentage points.

Sixth, import growth outpaced export growth. In the first half of the year, my country's import growth rate was 8.7 percentage points higher than its export growth rate, promoting balanced development of imports and exports. Among them, agricultural product imports reached 768.48 billion yuan, an increase of 8.6%.

"Overall, my country's foreign trade maintained a good operating trend in the first half of this year, with significant results in stabilizing scale and optimizing structure. However, it should also be noted that global inflationary pressures have not subsided, trade barriers have increased, geopolitical conflicts have occurred frequently, and global supply chains continue to be under pressure. Stabilizing foreign trade in the second half of the year faces many risks and challenges," said Wang Jun. He added that the national customs will continue to strengthen supervision, optimize services, and intensify efforts to promote the implementation of cross-border trade facilitation measures, using greater efforts and more concrete measures to smooth the domestic and international dual circulation, contributing customs strength to a good start for the "15th Five-Year Plan."

Maintaining its position as the world's largest goods trading nation

What are the specific highlights and positive changes in my country's foreign trade operation? Wang Jun outlined the overall situation of foreign trade operation with four words: "stability, innovation, vitality, and integration": First, the scale is "stable." In the first half of the year, my country's import and export scale exceeded 25 trillion yuan for the first time in the same period in history, an increase of 3.68 trillion yuan compared with the same period last year. On a monthly basis, it exceeded 4 trillion yuan for four consecutive months. According to the latest international data, my country remains the world's largest trading nation in goods.

Secondly, the driving force is "new." With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, my country's import and export of related products are showing strong momentum. In the first half of the year, my country's imports and exports of computing hardware such as electronic components and computer parts reached 5.13 trillion yuan, an increase of 56.6%. Intelligent products are rapidly iterating, and various innovative products are constantly emerging.

Thirdly, the main players are "dynamic." Chinese enterprises are proactively adapting to change, continuously expanding cooperation and seeking partners globally, resulting in an increasingly broad international "circle of friends." Compared with the same period last year, 267,000 foreign trade enterprises expanded their business to new countries and regions in the first half of this year. These enterprises' combined import and export value increased by 22.6%, accounting for nearly 70% of the total foreign trade value.

Fourthly, there is "internal and external integration." my country adheres to proactively expanding its opening-up, having implemented zero-tariff policies with 63 countries, continuously promoting common development with its economic and trade partners. In the first half of the year, my country's imports and exports with 31 free trade agreement partners increased by 28.1%, accounting for 46.5% of total foreign trade. Comprehensive bonded zones have fully leveraged their unique function and policy integration advantages in connecting domestic and international markets and resources, achieving imports and exports of 4.34 trillion yuan in the first half of the year, a 28.2% increase.

Wang Jun stated that my country's innovation momentum is strong, its economic entities are highly dynamic, and its level of openness is high, ensuring a solid foundation for foreign trade. We are confident and capable of maintaining this positive momentum in foreign trade development.

The performance of foreign-invested enterprises in my country's foreign trade system has attracted market attention. "my country continues to promote high-quality development and high-level opening-up, with stable economic growth and a continuously improving business environment, making it attractive for foreign-invested enterprises to come, stay, and thrive," said Lü Daliang, spokesperson for the General Administration of Customs and Director of the Department of Statistics and Analysis.

Lü Daliang explained that firstly, my country's door to opening-up is opening wider and wider, and the level of openness is increasing. Stable policy expectations encourage foreign-invested enterprises to come. Data from the Ministry of Commerce shows that nearly 4,000 foreign-invested enterprises increased their investment in China in the first five months of this year. Secondly, my country's manufacturing industry has a complete industrial system and strong supporting capabilities, allowing foreign-invested enterprises to deeply cultivate the Chinese market and generate profits for investors globally. Third, my country leads industrial innovation through technological innovation, attracting more and more multinational companies to place their R&D and high-end manufacturing processes in China, thus enhancing their global competitiveness. Foreign-invested enterprises have also personally experienced the benefits of thriving in China.

"It can be said that an open China offers opportunities everywhere. We welcome foreign-invested enterprises to deeply integrate into China's innovation and industrial chains and share the fruits of China's high-quality development," said Lü Daliang.

Releasing More Consumption Dividends and Cooperation Space

According to customs statistics, in the first half of this year, imports reached 10.74 trillion yuan, exceeding 10 trillion yuan for the first time in the same period in history, representing a 22.1% increase. This growth rate was 8.7 percentage points higher than that of exports, and its contribution to foreign trade growth was greater than that of exports, promoting balanced trade development. Wang Jun explained that the rapid growth in imports was mainly due to three factors:

First, a super-large market, which is the fundamental support. As the world's largest manufacturing country and the world's second-largest consumer market, my country has a vast market with enormous potential. my country has been the world's second-largest import market for 17 consecutive years, with an average annual growth of 5.1%, and its share of global imports has increased from 7.9% to about 10%.

Second, a positive economic performance, which is the endogenous driving force. my country's economy operated smoothly overall, with industrial production showing steady growth and market demand improving, providing strong support for the expansion of imports of raw materials, components, and consumer goods. In the first half of the year, my country's imports of edible oil and aquatic edible products increased by 19.2% and 24.1%, respectively.

Thirdly, proactively expanding imports is a necessary condition. my country has been orderly expanding its independent and unilateral opening-up, implementing zero-tariff policies for 63 countries, and successfully hosting international exhibitions such as the China International Import Expo, the China International Consumer Goods Expo, and the China Chain Store & Franchise Expo, providing a "window" for global products to enter the Chinese market. In the first half of the year, my country's imports from more than 150 countries and regions increased. At the same time, China actively expanded import access for agricultural and food products. This year, dried chili peppers and cashews from African countries with which China has diplomatic relations, as well as pecans from Uruguay, apples from Belgium, and dried longan from Cambodia, have gained import access.