Imports, exports up 8.7% in Jan-Feb
CHINA’S total imports and exports of goods expanded 8.7 percent year on year in yuan terms in the first two months of 2024, official data showed yesterday.
From January to February, the country’s foreign trade in goods stood at 6.61 trillion yuan (US$930.96 billion), according to the General Administration of Customs.
Exports grew 10.3 percent year on year to 3.75 trillion yuan, while imports rose 6.7 percent from the same period of 2023 to 2.86 trillion yuan.
In the first two months, China’s trade in goods continued the upward momentum of the fourth quarter of last year, registering a yearly growth for the fifth consecutive month, GAC official Lyu Daliang said, adding that the imports and exports during the period have hit a historic high.
Private businesses have played a bigger role in fueling the growth of foreign trade in goods, according to the data. During the period, the trade value of private enterprises took up 54.6 percent of the total, up 4.2 percentage points from the same period in 2023, while that of foreign-invested firms constituted 29 percent.
Yesterday’s data also revealed an uptick in imports and exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the United States.
In the first two months, China’s trade with its largest trade partner, ASEAN, rose 8.1 percent year on year to 993.24 billion yuan, accounting for 15 percent of the country’s total trade value.
China’s trade in goods with its third-largest trade partner, the US, grew 3.7 percent to 707.7 billion yuan during the period, while that with the European Union, its secondlargest trade partner, edged down 1.3 percent on year.
Other highlights of trade in goods during the January-February period include a robust rise in exports of machinery and electronic products.
(Xinhua)