RIYADH: China’s total goods imports and exports surged 2.1 percent year on year in the first half of 2023 to reach 20.1 trillion Chinese yuan ($2.81 trillion), up from 19.8 trillion yuan in the same period of 2022.
The is the first time the country’s trade in goods exceeded 20 trillion yuan in a six-month period, according to a Chinese news outlet citing data from the General Administration of Customs.
The data indicated that exports grew by 3.7 percent year on year to reach 11.46 trillion yuan.
Commenting on the growth, GAC spokesperson Lyu Daliang said that China adhered to the general principle of pursuing progress while ensuring stability, steadily promoted high-quality development and saw stable economic recovery and sustained growth, despite facing a complicated external environment.
The country had 540,000 foreign trade companies with export and import records, marking a growth of 6.9 percent in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period last year.
The general trade sector, on the other hand, recorded a higher growth rate compared to overall foreign trade.
General trade accounted for 65.5 percent of the country’s total imports and exports, up 1.2 percentage points, mirroring the country’s continuous progress in improving independent industries.
In the first half of 2023, China experienced a remarkable 61.6 percent year-on-year increase in the total export value of its three critical tech-intensive green products: solar batteries, lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles.
These products collectively contributed 1.8 percentage points to the overall export growth during the same period, significantly driving the country’s green industry forward.
China’s cross-border e-commerce sector also maintained good momentum during the first half of 2023 as the total value of imports and exports surged by 16 percent year on year, reaching 1.1 trillion yuan.
Its trade with countries along the Belt and Road Initiative route reached 6.89 trillion yuan in the first half of 2023, marking a significant 9.8 percent year-on-year growth.
Notably, the Asian giant’s exports of auto parts, lithium-ion batteries, and parts of automatic data processing machines to these BRI countries grew by 39.3 percent, 34.3 percent, and 28.9 percent, respectively.
