China’s foreign trade value rises 2.9% to USD 2.98 trillion in the first half of the year

(Yicai) July 12 — The value of China’s foreign trade rose 2.9 percent in dollar terms to $2.98 trillion in the first half of the year, according to the latest official data.

China’s imports and exports rose 2 percent and 3.6 percent respectively to $1.27 trillion and $1.71 trillion in the six months ended June 30 from the same period a year earlier, generating a trade surplus of $435 billion, up 8.6 percent over the period, according to statistics released today by the General Administration of Customs.

In June alone, China’s foreign trade rose by 3.3 percent to 516.7 billion US dollars, according to GAC data.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) remained China’s largest trading partner in the first half of the year. The value of goods traded between the two countries rose 7.1 percent to $472.5 billion, with imports from and exports to ASEAN increasing 2 percent to $187 billion and 10.7 percent to $285.5 billion, respectively. Trade volumes with Vietnam and Malaysia rose 21 percent and 11 percent, to $123.8 billion and $100.2 billion, respectively.

Foreign trade between China and the European Union, the country’s second-largest trading partner, fell 3.7 percent to $382.4 billion during this period.

China’s imports from the US fell by 4.9 percent to 81.4 billion US dollars, while exports rose by 1.5 percent to 241.3 billion US dollars. This resulted in a trade surplus of 159.9 billion US dollars in the first half of the year. The value of foreign trade with China’s third-largest trading partner fell by 0.2 percent to 322.6 billion US dollars.

South Korea and Japan ranked fourth and fifth as their foreign trade value with China increased by 4.3 percent and decreased by 6.3 percent, respectively.

China’s exports of mechanical and electronic products rose 4.9 percent year-on-year to nearly $1 trillion in the first half of the year, and exports of integrated circuits rose 22 percent to $76.4 billion. Exports of labor-intensive products such as clothing and accessories were flat, while exports of shoes and boots fell 5.4 percent and those of furniture and parts rose 15 percent.

China’s imports of mechanical and electrical products, integrated circuits, and high-tech and new-tech products rose steadily, especially those of equipment and parts for automated data processing, which rose by nearly 54 percent to 32.1 billion U.S. dollars. Imports of agricultural products, meat and grains declined slightly.

Publisher: Futura Costaglione