Review of China’s Foreign Trade in the First Half of 2022
July 13, 2022
( The Chinese version shall prevail. )

    In the first half of 2022, China, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core, has efficiently coordinated in containing the pandemic while ensuring socioeconomic development. China strives to maintain stable macroeconomic performance, achieving a steady growth in foreign trade. According to Customs statistics, China’s foreign trade volume in goods in the first half of 2022 reached RMB19.8 trillion, up by 9.4% year-on-year. Exports grew by 13.2% to RMB11.14 trillion and imports increased by 4.8% to RMB8.66 trillion.

    The details are as follows:
    1. Foreign trade growth in May and June picked up significantly. Since May this year, China's pandemic prevention and control situation has continued to improve and pro-growth policies have gradually paid off. Foreign trade enterprises have made steady progress in resuming work and production and in particular, imports and exports of regions including the Yangtze River Delta have recovered rapidly, contributing to the rebound of overall growth rate of China’s foreign trade. China’s foreign trade volume in goods in May was up by 9.5% year-on-year, 9.4 percentage points higher than in April and further increased by 14.3% in June.
    2. Proportion of general trade continued to increase. In the first half of 2022, China's general trade rose by 13.1% to RMB12.71 trillion, accounting for 64.2% of China’s total foreign trade volume, 2.1 percentage points higher over the same period last year. Exports increased by 19% to RMB7.16 trillion. Imports grew by 6.5% to RMB5.55 trillion. Processing trade went up by 3.2% to RMB4.02 trillion.
    3. Imports and exports with major trading partners kept growing. In the first half of 2022, China’s trade with ASEAN, the EU, and the US reached RMB2.95 trillion, RMB2.71 trillion and RMB2.47 trillion, up by 10.6%, 7.5%, and 11.7%, respectively. Trade with countries along the Belt and Road and RCEP trading partners grew by 17.8% and 5.6%, respectively.
    4. Foreign trade entities have been further invigorated. In the first half of 2022, China has 506,000 foreign trade enterprises with export and import records, an increase of 5.5% year-on-year. China’s private enterprises rose by 6.9% to 425,000 with imports and exports increasing by 13.6% to RMB9.82 trillion, accounting for 49.6% of the country’s total, 1.9 percentage points higher over the same period last year. Foreign-invested enterprises marked RMB6.75 trillion in foreign trade, up by 2.1%. State-owned enterprises witnessed RMB3.2 trillion in imports and exports, up by 15.2%.
    5. Imports and exports of major products enjoyed steady growth. In the first half of 2022, China’s imports and exports of mechanical and electrical products grew by 4.2% to RMB9.72 trillion, making up 49.1% of China's total foreign trade. Imports and exports of agricultural products grew by 9.3% to RMB1.04 trillion, accounting for 5.2% of China's total. Exports of labour-intensive products grew by 13.5% to RMB1.99 trillion, making up 17.8% of China's total exports. Imports of energy products including crude oil, natural gas, and coal were up by 53.1% to RMB1.48 trillion, accounting for 17.1% of China's total imports.