China's H1 foreign trade posts 16.9 pct growth with optimized structure

BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) -- China's foreign trade jumped 16.9 percent year on year in the first half of 2026 (H1) to 25.47 trillion yuan (about 3.75 trillion U.S. dollars), marking the first time the figure has exceeded 25 trillion yuan for the same period, official data showed Tuesday.

China retains its position as the world's largest goods trader amid the robust performance, according to the data from the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

Of the total, exports rose 13.4 percent year on year to 14.73 trillion yuan, maintaining growth for 11 consecutive quarters, while imports expanded 22.1 percent to 10.74 trillion yuan, 8.7 percentage points higher than the export growth rate, facilitating more balanced trade development.

In H1, the volume of bulk commodity imports, including energy and metal ores, increased 3.4 percent, imports of mechanical and electrical products rose 28 percent, and agricultural product imports grew 8.6 percent.

"China's foreign trade has sustained sound momentum in the first half, with strong growth and stable operation, and notable progress has been made in stabilizing scale and improving structure," said Wang Jun, deputy head of the GAC, at a media conference of the State Council Information Office.

In the second quarter this year, total imports and exports hit 13.61 trillion yuan, up 18.4 percent year on year, the highest quarterly growth rate since the third quarter of 2021. Trade value in June alone rose 24.2 percent year on year, marking 17 consecutive months of growth.

Trade with countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative rose 14.8 percent to 12.97 trillion yuan in H1, accounting for 50.9 percent of total foreign trade. Trade with neighboring countries jumped 20.6 percent, while trade with Latin America, Africa and the EU registered growth of 16.2 percent, 19.6 percent and 10.2 percent respectively. Trade with Central and Eastern European countries also grew 11 percent in H1, extending 10 straight years of growth.

During the January-June period, private enterprises contributed 57 percent of total trade value, with their imports and exports rising 17 percent to 14.53 trillion yuan. Foreign-invested enterprises and state-owned enterprises registered a growth rate of 17.1 percent and 16.8 percent respectively.

China's eastern regions led the scale with over 20 trillion yuan of imports and exports, up 16.5 percent, accounting for 78.8 percent of the national total, while western, central, and northeastern regions posted growth of 20.3 percent, 20 percent and 8.6 percent respectively.

Exports of mechanical and electrical products rose 20.1 percent to 9.36 trillion yuan, taking up 63.5 percent of total exports, up 3.5 percentage points year on year. High-tech product exports surged 39 percent to 3.26 trillion yuan, and exports of self-owned brands grew 25.4 percent, with their share in total exports rising 2.4 percentage points.

The H1 trade performance embodies key features of China's current economic operation -- stability, innovation, vitality and integration with the rest of the world, Wang said.

New growth impetus is also gaining traction. Imports and exports of computing hardware, such as electronic components and computer parts, jumped 56.6 percent to 5.13 trillion yuan in H1, while AI-powered products, green low-carbon products and high-end equipment all saw strong export expansion, according to Wang.

A total of 267,000 foreign trade enterprises expanded their business to new markets in H1, whose combined trade value grew 22.6 percent, accounting for nearly 70 percent of the national total, Wang said.

Lyu Daliang, director of GAC's Department of Statistics and Analysis, noted that China has long held the position of the world's largest exporter of sporting goods, accounting for over 40 percent of global exports, and many Chinese products have been spotted at the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup. In the first half of 2026, China's exports of sporting goods and equipment reached 67.53 billion yuan, among which exports of balls hit 3.08 billion yuan.

In the first half of the year, China's home appliance exports reached 360.96 billion yuan. Among them, amid frequent global heatwaves, exports of cooling appliances such as air conditioners, electric fans, and refrigerators totaled 107.91 billion yuan, meeting the needs of numerous households, according to Lyu.

While the country faces external headwinds for foreign trade in the second half of the year, Wang noted that China's foreign trade fundamentals remain solid, supported by strong innovation momentum, vibrant market entities and high-level opening up.

"We have the confidence and capability to sustain the sound development momentum of foreign trade," Wang said. Customs authorities will continue to strengthen supervision, optimize services, and advance cross-border trade facilitation to maintain the sound development momentum of foreign trade, and contribute to a good start for the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), Wang added.