China continues expanding circle of friends in foreign trade

In 2024, 88.38 million customs declarations were processed in China, which indicates a stable rise in the total volume, incremental growth, and quality of China's foreign trade.

According to data released by China's General Administration of Customs, the country's total goods imports and exports reached 43.85 trillion yuan (about $6 trillion) in 2024, up 5 percent year on year, hitting a record high.

Chinese-made vehicles are about to be exported at an automobile terminal in Taicang, east China's Jiangsu province, Jan. 8, 2025. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xuzhong)

China's foreign trade growth reached 2.1 trillion yuan in 2024, as the world's second-largest economy further consolidated its top position globally in goods trade. The structure of import and export products has also been continuously optimized and upgraded, with high-tech products reporting good growth numbers and a boom in new types of trade.

Despite the increasing challenges and uncertainties, China's foreign trade continues to show resilience, demonstrating the vitality and potential of the Chinese economy. This underscores that in the face of rising protectionism, openness and cooperation remain a strategic choice for global economic development.

The United Nations (UN) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have recently warned that rising tariffs could hamper global economic growth. As protectionism is on the rise, many countries are exploring ways to mitigate the impact of growing trade barriers on their economies.

While following an innovation-driven development approach and vigorously boosting consumption, China has been steadily advancing high-level opening up and enhancing its capacity for open and win-win cooperation amid the headwinds against globalization, with an ever-expanding "circle of friends" in foreign trade.

According to statistics, China has import and export records with almost all countries and regions designated in the UN Statistics Division. China's trade with over 160 trading partners around the world achieved growth, and the country has become a major trading partner for more than 150 countries and regions.

China's foreign trade with traditional markets, including the European Union and the United States, grew in 2024. Besides, for the first time, Belt and Road partner countries accounted for more than 50 percent of China's total foreign trade value. A significant portion of China's foreign trade last year came from emerging markets such as ASEAN. It is the continuous expansion of opening up that further strengthens the country's foreign trade resilience.

Providing high-end, green, and intelligent products to global trading partners

Smart home appliances are manufactured in a workshop of an electronics company in Ma'anshan, east China's Anhui province, ready to be exported, Dec. 20, 2024. (People's Daily Online/Wang Wensheng)

At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) recently concluded in the U.S. city of Las Vegas, American journalist Patrick George tries on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) for three times. He was drawn by what he described as "impeccable build quality" of the Chinese EVs. He attributed the progress of China's automotive industry to copious investments, a single-minded focus on electrification and software, learning from partners, a well-established supply chain, and intense internal competition.

The popularity of Chinese products at the CES demonstrated that the upgraded version of "Made in China" is a key driver for the high-quality development of China's foreign trade. Based on the complete industrial system, China continues boosting scientific and technological innovation to develop new quality productive forces.

The upgraded Chinese manufacturing provides China's trading partners with more high-end, green, and intelligent products. For instance, AI-enabled washing machines produced by Chinese companies can automatically identify the weight and materials of clothes to be washed and select the optimal washing mode. China's smart cooking machines are equipped with different types of menus and can prepare delicious dishes only within the time of a song. As China continues to enhance its innovation capacity, Chinese products are gaining more popularity and recognition worldwide.

Opening China's huge market to share development opportunities

The vast Chinese market is another crucial factor behind the high-quality development and expanding "circle of friends" in China's foreign trade.

China has been steadily expanding voluntary and unilateral opening up as well as institutional opening up, unleashing the potential of the massive Chinese market. These efforts have contributed to the high-quality development of the country's foreign trade, providing more market opportunities to the world.

A man shops in a store selling imported commodities at Jinyi Comprehensive Bonded Zone in Jinhua, east China's Zhejiang province, Jan. 11, 2025. (People's Daily Online/Shi Kuanbing)

Via the cold-chain transportation of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, tripe from New Zealand, greenfin horse-faced filefish from Vietnam, and other products have been transported to China and featured on Chinese hotpot menus. Fruits like Thai durians and Lao bananas enter the Chinese market through the China-Laos Railway, enriching consumption choices of the Chinese people.

On December 1, 2024, China granted zero tariff treatment to 100 percent of tariff lines from all the least developed countries that have diplomatic relations with China, which led to an 18.1 percent growth in imports from relevant countries in the month, 5.8 percentage points higher than the first eleven months in 2024. This further demonstrates the immense potential of the vast Chinese market, which is bound to provide tremendous opportunities for more countries in the world.

China's economy has a stable foundation, multiple advantages, strong resilience and great potential. The dominating trend of a sound Chinese economy for the long term and the elements supporting it have not changed. This gives China more confidence in sharing opportunities and pursuing common development with the rest of the world.