According to data released by the General Administration of Customs on the 9th, the total value of China's goods trade imports and exports in the first five months of this year was 20.68 trillion yuan, with a year-on-year growth rate continuing to rise to 15.3%, an increase of 0.4 percentage points compared to the previous four months. Among them, the monthly import and export volume in May was 4.45 trillion yuan, with a year-on-year growth rate expanding by 2.7 percentage points to 16.9% compared to the previous month.
Regarding China's foreign trade performance, Lv Daliang, Director of the Statistics and Analysis Department of the General Administration of Customs, evaluated it as "continuing stable growth". He said that since the beginning of this year, under the guidance of the head of state's diplomatic strategy, China has actively deepened pragmatic cooperation with global economic and trade partners, injecting stabilizing forces into international economic and trade operations. As of May, monthly imports and exports have exceeded 4 trillion yuan for three consecutive months, maintaining a good operating trend.
From the perspective of exports, the export value of 11.91 trillion yuan in the first five months increased by 11.8% year-on-year. Among them, the export of high-tech and high value-added electromechanical products reached 7.58 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.4%, accounting for over 60% of China's overall exports. The export of green products such as lithium batteries and wind turbines increased by about 40%.
From the perspective of imports, with the overall improvement of domestic demand, the cumulative imports in the first five months amounted to 8.77 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 20.5%. Among them, imports in May increased by 21.5%, a year-on-year increase of over 20% for three consecutive months.
Private enterprises with flexible mechanisms, market sensitivity, and innovative spirit will continue to maintain their position as the largest foreign trade entity in China. In the first five months, the import and export of private enterprises reached 11.81 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15.5%. As an important force in China's foreign trade, during the same period, foreign-funded enterprises imported and exported 6.02 trillion yuan, an increase of 15.7%, accounting for nearly 30% of China's total foreign trade value.
In the first five months, China's imports and exports to ASEAN, the EU and the United States increased by 16.6%, 10.3% and 6.6% year on year, respectively, and those to countries jointly building the "the Belt and Road" increased by 13.6%.
It is worth noting that in the first five months, China's imports and exports to African countries reached 1.14 trillion yuan, breaking through 1 trillion yuan for the first time in history during the same period, a year-on-year increase of 18.2%. In May, imports from Africa amounted to 95.13 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15%, marking the ninth consecutive month of growth.
Lv Daliang stated that in May, China fully implemented zero tariff measures for African countries with diplomatic relations, further accelerating the growth rate of high-quality specialty products imported from Africa, such as fruits and aquatic products, with month on month growth exceeding 30%.