Why does the export growth rate of inland Xi'an rank first among sub provincial cities?

On February 17th, the first day of the Chinese New Year, Xi'an International Port Station remained busy. In the early morning of that day, the X8155 China Europe freight train slowly started and headed towards Duisburg, Germany. This is the first China Europe freight train departing from Xi'an in the Year of the Horse during the Bingwu period.

The busy China Europe freight train echoes the upward trend of foreign trade.

In 2025, the total import and export value of Xi'an will be 498.79 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21.1%, ranking second among vice provincial cities in China in terms of growth rate. Among them, exports amounted to 349.26 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 25.8%, ranking first among vice provincial cities in China in terms of growth rate.

The level of openness is an important yardstick for measuring the development level of a city. For inland cities, promoting high-level opening up to the outside world is more challenging. How can Xi'an, an inland city that does not rely on the sea or borders, lead the growth rate of foreign trade exports among vice provincial cities in China?

The answer is hidden in the new export landscape of Xi'an based on advanced manufacturing industry.

The most eye-catching ones are the 'New Three'. In 2025, Xi'an's "new three types" represented by new energy vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products will export a total of 54.42 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 31.4%. Especially new energy vehicles are accelerating their entry into the vast global market.

According to statistics from Guanzhong Customs, in 2025, Xi'an will export 240000 new energy vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 60%; The export value is 33 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 66%, which has exceeded the total of the four years from 2021 to 2024. The demand in the EU and Middle East markets continues to be released, and the proportion of emerging markets such as Mexico, Belgium, and Brazil continues to increase.

At the same time, the "green content" and "new content" are simultaneously increased. In 2025, the export of high-tech products in Xi'an will reach 217.3 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 26.3%. The proportion of general trade continues to increase, and more high value-added links such as research and development, design, and branding are accelerating to stay locally. Foreign trade is shifting from "scale expansion" to "value enhancement".

The product can go far thanks to the smooth trade channels.

For inland cities, ports are the lifeline of foreign trade. As the construction of the China Europe freight train assembly center continues to advance, Xi'an is accelerating towards the forefront of openness. The dual hub linkage of air and land has rapidly expanded the logistics radiation radius of Xi'an.

In 2025, the China Europe freight train (Xi'an) will operate 6037 trains and transport 6.96 million tons of goods, ranking first in the country in terms of operation and freight volume for 8 consecutive years; Xi'an has opened 12 new international passenger and freight routes, taking the lead in achieving full coverage of the "Five Countries and Eight Cities" passenger routes in Central Asia nationwide. The advantage of the channel is transforming into a trade advantage.

Synchronized upgrading of institutional supply. We actively respond to risks and challenges, and together with customs, finance, taxation, industry and information technology, and Chanba International Port, we have successively introduced a series of supportive policies such as trade facilitation, China Europe freight trains, and industry trade integration, providing strong support for the development of foreign trade, "said Ma Xiaoqin, Deputy Director of the Xi'an Municipal Bureau of Commerce.

For example, around the export of new energy vehicles, Xi'an Customs has launched a process of "advance declaration release upon arrival direct loading upon arrival". In the past, it used to take one month for companies to handle taxes, but now it has been compressed to two or three days. In terms of supporting lithium battery exports, Xi'an has pioneered the "multiple items in the same box" solution, which has reduced packaging costs for enterprises by 30%; Adopting the "separate container shipping" mechanism to reduce domestic transportation time by 50%; Implement appointment free inspection to reduce waiting time by 75%.

The structure is being optimized, and new kinetic energy is growing.

The previously relatively weak service trade is accelerating its momentum. From January to November 2025, the import and export volume of service trade in Xi'an reached 62.758 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 26.7%; Five cases were selected as national technology trade innovation practice cases, and two cases were selected as national best practice cases for digital trade.

At the same time, Xi'an's foreign trade territory continues to expand outward. By 2025, Xi'an will establish trade relations with 217 countries and regions, an increase of 12 from the previous year; We have maintained stable cooperation with traditional partners such as the EU, South Korea and Japan, and achieved steady growth in regional trade with countries jointly building the "the Belt and Road" and ASEAN.

There is a saying among foreign trade professionals that goes, 'It's better to see each other than to email a thousand times.'. In recent years, the Xi'an Municipal Bureau of Commerce has focused on the city's industrial chain cluster, supporting enterprises to go global and participate in key overseas exhibitions, and vigorously exploring diversified international markets. In 2025, the Xi'an Municipal Bureau of Commerce organized more than 600 enterprises to participate in over 260 key overseas exhibitions, effectively driving the number of foreign trade entities in the city to 4383, including 910 new foreign trade entities.

Meanwhile, the business environment for foreign trade continues to improve. The Xi'an region of Shaanxi Pilot Free Trade Zone ranks 15th in the China Pilot Free Trade Zone Institutional Innovation Index, with 81 reform tasks solidly promoted and 82 innovative cases cultivated, of which 6 have been replicated and promoted by national ministries and commissions.

The comprehensive bonded zone is the main platform for an outward oriented economy. Xi'an will continue to promote pilot projects for bonded research and development, bonded maintenance, and general taxpayer qualification for value-added tax. By 2025, the number of pilot enterprises will increase to 24. From January to November 2025, the import and export volume of bonded maintenance business increased by 190.5% year-on-year, demonstrating its enormous potential in extending the industrial chain and enhancing added value.

Practice has shown that the leap in openness does not lie in geographical location conditions, but in the collaborative efforts of channel reshaping, industrial advancement, and institutional innovation. Xi'an, located in the inland hinterland, is accelerating its entry into the forefront of opening up, and the outline of the inland reform and opening up highland is becoming increasingly clear.