China’s total goods imports and exports came in at 14.14 trillion yuan ($1.96 trillion) in the first four months of this year, posting a year-on-year increase of 2.4 percent, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs (GAC) on Friday.
During the period, exports rose by 7.5 percent to 8.39 trillion yuan, while imports declined by 4.2 percent to 5.75 trillion yuan.
High-tech products stood out, with imports and exports totaling 1.52 trillion yuan from January to April, up 7.4 percent compared to the same period last year.
Private enterprises continued to play a major role in China’s foreign trade, recording 8.05 trillion yuan in total trade, an increase of 6.8 percent year on year. Transactions of these firms accounted for 56.9 percent of the country’s total foreign trade and contributed 3.7 percentage points to overall trade growth.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations remained China’s largest trade partner, with trade growing by 9.2 percent during the period.
In April, China’s foreign trade growth accelerated by 4.3 percentage points compared to the first quarter, said Lyu Daliang, director of the GAC’s department of statistics and analysis. He noted that exports are growing at a faster pace, while imports have rebounded from a decline to an increase, showing strong resilience.
Local governments and departments across China have worked in concert to effectively respond to external shocks, driving steady economic recovery and maintaining stable growth in foreign trade this year, Lyu said.
