Stable scale and optimized structure: China's foreign trade has maintained a positive growth structure for four consecutive months
Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, June 8. The "Economic Information Daily" published an article on June 8 "Stable Scale and Excellent Structure my country's foreign trade has maintained positive growth for 4 consecutive months." According to the article, data released by the General Administration of Customs on June 7 showed that in the first five months of this year, my country's total import and export value was 16.77 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.7 percent. Among them, exports were 9.62 trillion yuan, up 8.1 percent; imports were 7.15 trillion yuan, up 0.5 percent; and the trade surplus was 2.47 trillion yuan, up 38 percent. Lu Daliang, director of the Statistical Analysis Department of the General Administration of Customs, said that a series of policies and measures to stabilize the scale and optimize the structure of foreign trade have helped foreign trade operators to actively respond to the challenges brought about by weakening external demand, effectively capture market opportunities, and promote China's foreign trade to maintain positive growth for four consecutive months.
On the basis of steady growth in scale, there are still a series of structural highlights worth paying attention to in China's foreign trade. From the perspective of trade methods, general trade, as the main mode of China's foreign trade, has increased the proportion of imports and exports. In the first five months, China's general trade import and export reached 11 trillion yuan, an increase of 7%, accounting for 65.6% of China's total foreign trade value, an increase of 1.4 percentage points compared to the same period last year.
From the perspective of foreign trade entities, the proportion of imports and exports of private enterprises exceeds 50%. In the first five months, the import and export of private enterprises reached 8.86 trillion yuan, an increase of 13.1%, accounting for 52.8% of China's total foreign trade value, an increase of 3.9 percentage points compared to the same period last year.
From the perspective of major markets, China's imports and exports to ASEAN and the European Union have maintained growth. In the first five months, ASEAN was China's largest trading partner, with a total trade value of 2.59 trillion yuan, an increase of 9.9%, accounting for 15.4% of China's total foreign trade. The European Union is China's second largest trading partner, with a total trade value of 2.28 trillion yuan, an increase of 3.6%, accounting for 13.6%.
Over the same period, China's imports and exports to countries along the "the Belt and Road" totaled 5.78 trillion yuan, an increase of 13.2%. Among them, exports reached 3.44 trillion yuan, an increase of 21.6%; Imports reached 2.34 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.7%.
Behind the data lies the tangible gains for enterprises. Recently, in the production workshop of Juli New Materials Technology Co., Ltd., a shaft welding wire is being taken off the production line. This batch of orders of nearly 2 million yuan of welding materials, which were urgently prepared, will be exported in batches to Romania, a country along the "the Belt and Road", after passing the customs inspection. "Our trade cooperation and exchanges with countries along the the Belt and Road have become more frequent, which has become an important growth point for the company's exports," said Qiao Jichun, the company's general manager. Since this year, the company has gained new business in Central and Eastern Europe, ASEAN, West Asia and other countries and regions along the "the Belt and Road", expanding more than 10 potential customers.
Pang Chaoran, Deputy Researcher at the Research Institute of the Ministry of Commerce, told reporters that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement includes 10 ASEAN countries and 15 member countries including Australia, China, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand. Since its implementation nearly a year and a half ago, the regional economic and trade potential has been continuously unleashed. Recently, RCEP officially entered into force for the Philippines, and all 15 member states within the agreement have completed the entry into force process. Economic and trade cooperation in the region will continue to deepen. In addition, the construction of the "the Belt and Road" is also progressing steadily, which provides more convenient conditions for China's foreign trade enterprises to explore the international market, and will also become an important guarantee for the steady growth of foreign trade.
In addition, driven by the "new three types" of electric passenger vehicles, lithium batteries, and solar cells, China's exports of mechanical and electrical products reached 5.57 trillion yuan in the first five months, an increase of 9.5%, accounting for 57.9% of the total export value.
Wang Qing, Chief Macro Analyst of Dongfang Jincheng, analyzed that automobile exports continue to remain high, and the transformation and upgrading of the manufacturing industry are shaping new export momentum. In May, automobile exports continued the upward trend of both quantity and price since the beginning of the year. This is mainly due to China's "overtaking on the bend" in the field of new energy vehicles, and its export share in the global market, including developed countries such as Europe, is significantly increasing. At the same time, the export of lithium batteries and solar cells continued to grow rapidly in May, reflecting the significant promoting effect of domestic manufacturing transformation and upgrading on exports.
It is worth noting that the "new three samples" are all mechanical and electrical products, and are expected to maintain a good export growth trend. The recent analysis of China's electromechanical foreign trade situation in the first quarter released by the China Chamber of Commerce shows that in the past three years, factors such as demand release and order inflow that have driven China's electromechanical exports to record highs are undergoing significant changes. The sluggish global demand for electronic information products and capacity transfer have led to a decrease in export volume. The export of emerging industries such as electric vehicles and photovoltaic products will continue to maintain a high prosperity, continuously releasing growth momentum. The main automotive and photovoltaic enterprises currently have full orders and are expanding production or deploying external investment in an orderly manner according to plans, with an increasing trend in exports.
Pang Chaoran further pointed out that in recent years, China's economic transformation and upgrading have accelerated, and the level of export product technology has improved. Most "new track" industries have a first mover advantage. "These advantages are being transformed into the international competitiveness of China's export-oriented industries, becoming an important force in promoting high-quality development of the Chinese economy."
Moreover, the role of new formats and models in promoting foreign trade is becoming increasingly evident. According to data from the Ministry of Commerce, there are over 100000 cross-border e-commerce entities in China. The vitality of cross-border e-commerce is constantly being unleashed, and recently, stocking up on Chinese summer appliances in advance on cross-border e-commerce platforms has become a new hotspot. According to statistics from Alibaba International, the demand for air conditioners from overseas buyers increased by more than 50% year-on-year from March to May this year, and the year-on-year growth of fans also exceeded 30%. Among them, "self generating air conditioning" that combines photovoltaic and energy storage systems is the most popular. In addition, floor fans powered by solar panels and direct drive, as well as desktop fans with added water tanks that can serve as water cooling, are also in high demand.
Zhongshan Chunkai Electric Appliances has been deeply involved in Alibaba International Station for many years. The company leader stated that in the past three years, fan export orders have increased by 10% annually. This year, European businesses are particularly sensitive to green energy, and solar fans and air conditioners have become new explosive products.
Looking ahead to the future, Pang Chaoran stated that with the gradual gathering and growth of these new driving forces, China's foreign trade is expected to achieve the goal of promoting stability and improving quality, and make more contributions to the high-quality development of the national economy.
