China's foreign trade has maintained strong growth despite a complex and volatile external environment and numerous challenges. What are the new highlights and trends worth noting? A CCTV reporter provides analysis based on data from the General Administration of Customs.
The latest data from the General Administration of Customs for the first seven months of the year shows a clear picture of resilience. Through four key dimensions, I share my observations from the scene.
Stable and Accelerating Growth through Diversified Markets
The first keyword is "stable and accelerating growth." In the first seven months of this year, China's total goods trade imports and exports reached 30.13 trillion yuan, setting a record high for the same period. More importantly, growth momentum is strengthening. The trade growth rate was 15.3% in the first five months, accelerated to 16.9% in the first half of the year, and reached 17.3% in the first seven months, showing a steady upward trend. Against the backdrop of a slowdown in global trade growth, China's foreign trade achieved this "headwind acceleration" not through reliance on a single market, but through the expansion of diversified markets and the supply chain stability derived from China's large-scale industrial system.
Smart Manufacturing Takes the Lead as New Quality Productive Forces
The second keyword is "smart manufacturing takes the lead." Several sets of high-end manufacturing data from the customs report are particularly impressive: exports of 3D printers, industrial robots, and ships increased by 110%, over 13%, and 32.7% respectively. This summer, in addition to traditional home appliances selling well in Europe, high-tech products performed exceptionally well. For example, "China's robot team" is popular overseas, with over 80% of some high-end intelligent robots in the global market produced in China. High-value-added electronic components and domestic chips are also becoming core growth drivers for China's exports. This indicates that China's foreign trade is accelerating its transition from a traditional "cost advantage" to a "technology and quality advantage," with new quality productive forces becoming a key engine for export growth.
Regional Vitality Emerges from Central and Western Regions
The third keyword is "regional vitality." Based on recent research in central and western regions, the new momentum of China's foreign trade is not limited to coastal areas but shows a "sudden rise of the central and western regions" pattern. In Sichuan, cross-border e-commerce has become a new strong growth pole. In the first half of this year, Sichuan alone exported over 900,000 postal items, exceeding the total for the entire previous year. In Anhui, in the central region, automobile exports took a full year last year to surpass one million vehicles, but this year, it took only half a year to cross that milestone. This leap from "a full year to break one million" to "a half year to break one million" reflects not only product exports but also a vivid microcosm of China's industrial chain moving towards the mid-to-high end.
Efficient Logistics Reshaping Trade Patterns
The fourth keyword is "logistics support." Efficient logistics networks are reshaping trade patterns. The General Administration of Customs reports that the average daily volume of cargo under supervision is enormous: 400,000 containers, 15 million tons of goods, and 22 million express parcels. Data released today shows that the volume of goods transported by water, air, road, and rail all achieved positive growth in the first seven months of this year. Notably, the value share of air and road transport reached 40%, with growth exceeding 30%. Why is air and road transport growing so fast? Observations indicate this confirms the structural change in China's export products. Chips, high-end electronics, and cross-border e-commerce parcels have very high "timeliness" requirements for supply chains. By the end of July, over 100 new international air cargo routes have been opened this year, adding 229 round-trip flights per week. On the road side, the TIR (Transports Internationaux Routiers) system implemented in the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta allows "point-to-point" cross-border customs clearance without inspection, improving transport efficiency by over 20%. The seamless connection of the "Air Silk Road" and "land express lanes" provides an efficient express lane for high-value-added product exports.
The data released today by the General Administration of Customs demonstrates not only "reasonable quantitative growth" but also "effective qualitative improvement." China's foreign trade possesses not only a "stable foundation" to withstand external shocks but also a "new quality explosive force" to accelerate transformation and upgrading.
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