Ministry Of Commerce: Operation Of China'S Foreign Trade From January To April 2021

From January to April, China's foreign trade continued its growth momentum, and the "three major plans" of preferential import and export, trade industry integration and smooth trade were comprehensively promoted. The total import and export value reached 11.62 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 28.5%, and the scale reached a record high in the same period. The main features are as follows:

First, the growth rate of import, export and export reached the highest level in the same period in 10 years. From January to April, China's import and export, export and import increased by 28.5%, 33.8% and 22.7% respectively on a year-on-year basis (the same below). Compared with the same period in 2019, import and export, export and import increased by 21.8%, 24.8% and 18.4% respectively. In April, imports and exports reached 3.15 trillion yuan, the second highest value in monthly history.

Second, we have achieved positive results in deepening traditional markets and opening up emerging markets. From January to April, exports to the European Union, the United States, Japan, Hong Kong and other traditional markets increased by 36.1%, 49.3%, 12.6% and 30.9%, respectively, increasing the overall export growth rate by 16.8%. Exports to ASEAN, Latin America, Africa and other emerging markets increased by 29%, 47.1% and 27.6% respectively, boosting the overall export growth rate by 8.6%.

Third, the main body of foreign trade continues to grow, and private enterprises continue to play the role of the main force. From January to April, 61655 foreign trade operators were registered. The export of private enterprises was 3.53 trillion yuan, an increase of 45%. The overall export growth rate was increased by 23.2 percentage points, accounting for an increase of 4.4 percentage points to 55.9% compared with the same period last year.

Fourth, the "housing economy" products continue to drive export growth, and the export of some labor-intensive products has recovered. From January to April, the export of "home economy" products such as computers, mobile phones, household appliances, lamps and toys increased by 32.2%, 35.6%, 50.3%, 66.8% and 59% respectively, increasing the overall export growth rate by 6.9%. In developed countries, vaccination progress is fast, people's travel demand is increasing, and the export of clothing, shoes and boots, bags and other exports has recovered, with growth rates of 41%, 25.8% and 19.2% respectively.

Fifth, new business forms and new models are booming, and the endogenous power is further enhanced. Cross border e-commerce maintained a rapid growth, with import and export value of 419.5 billion yuan from January to March, an increase of 46.5%. Bonded maintenance of processing trade has been steadily promoted, which plays an important role in promoting high-quality employment and guiding industrial agglomeration. In April, the 129th Canton Fair was successfully held online, with 26000 enterprises participating in the fair. Purchasers from 227 countries and regions registered to watch the fair, bringing new business opportunities to the global exhibition merchants under the epidemic situation.

Sixthly, the steady and good domestic economy has driven the growth of imports, and the rapid rise in the prices of some bulk commodities has boosted the growth rate of imports. Since the beginning of this year, the PMI of manufacturing industry has remained in the expansion range, boosting the import demand of energy resources, raw materials and spare parts. From January to April, the import volume of crude oil, iron ore and integrated circuit increased by 7.2%, 6.7% and 30.8% respectively. The prices of some bulk commodities rose rapidly. The average import prices of soybeans, iron ore and copper ore increased by 15.5%, 58.8% and 32.9% respectively, and the overall import growth rate was increased by 4.2%.

Recently, all localities have been actively implementing the spirit of the national foreign trade work conference, focusing on foreign trade services, building a new development pattern, and putting forward practical measures in the aspects of ensuring the main body of the market, ensuring the market share, ensuring the stability of the industrial chain supply chain, and promoting the innovation and development of foreign trade, so as to play an important role in improving the comprehensive competitiveness of foreign trade.