Positive Momentum Emerges - Perspective on the "Transcript" of First Quarter Foreign Trade

In the complex and severe external environment, China's foreign trade has shown strong momentum and a good start. In the first quarter, the total value of China's goods trade imports and exports reached 11.84 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15%.

Industry insiders pointed out that this "report card" reflects positive changes such as accelerated product upgrades, accelerated cultural overseas expansion, and steady progress in market diversification, which further demonstrates the sufficient confidence of foreign trade enterprises in proactive innovation and diversified layout.

Growth rate of 15%. China's foreign trade shows strong momentum in the first quarter

According to customs statistics, the total value of China's goods trade imports and exports in the first quarter was 11.84 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15%. Among them, exports amounted to 6.85 trillion yuan, an increase of 11.9%; Imports amounted to 4.99 trillion yuan, an increase of 19.6%.

Wang Jun, Deputy Director General of the General Administration of Customs, pointed out at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on the 14th that the scale of foreign trade in the first quarter reached a new historical high, and the quarterly growth rate was the highest in nearly five years, laying a solid foundation for stable growth of foreign trade throughout the year.

Feng Lin, Executive Director of the Research and Development Department of Dongfang Jincheng, believes that the rapid growth of exports in the first quarter is the result of multiple domestic and international factors working together. Domestically, the transformation and upgrading effects of the manufacturing industry continue to emerge, accelerating the export of automobiles and high-tech products, and making positive progress in diversifying export markets; Internationally, the global AI investment boom has driven high growth in chip exports, coupled with overall strong external demand, collectively driving rapid export growth. At the same time, driven by exports and the stabilization of domestic demand, imports have also maintained rapid growth.

The structure of foreign trade is constantly being optimized. According to data from the General Administration of Customs, China's automobile exports increased by 54.2% year-on-year in the first quarter, ship exports increased by 45.2% year-on-year, and high-tech product exports increased by 25.3% year-on-year. Among them, private enterprises have performed particularly well. Wang Jun introduced that in the first quarter, private enterprises' exports of ships and marine equipment, aerospace equipment, and medical instruments increased by 41.3%, 25.6%, and 19.1% respectively. At the same time, private enterprises have accurately aligned with industrial development, expanded the import of advanced technology equipment and key components, and imported petrochemical machinery, heavy machinery, and electronic information products have increased by 25.8%, 126.7%, and 46.6% respectively.

The effectiveness of market diversification is evident. In the first quarter, China's imports and exports to ASEAN and Latin America both increased by 15.4% year-on-year, imports and exports to Africa increased by 23.7% year-on-year, and imports and exports to the European Union and the United Kingdom increased by 14.6% and 13.1% respectively year-on-year.

Innovation driven diversified layout shows resilience in enterprise development

Faced with the complex and severe international environment, China's foreign trade enterprises actively hedge external risks by strengthening innovative research and development, accelerating diversified layout, and other means, highlighting their resilience and confidence in development.

Entering Jiangsu Xinshike Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd., the highly automated assembly line operates efficiently. According to the company's head Guo Yaozhong, in recent years, the company has continuously increased its research and development innovation efforts, striving for excellence in the functional lens segment. Our developed functional lenses such as anti fatigue, progressive multifocal, and anti blue light accurately meet market demand. Currently, the company has sufficient orders on hand, with 90% coming from overseas

Wang Lei, the person in charge of Shengwei International Holdings (China) Co., Ltd., told reporters that in recent years, the company has completed the upgrading and transformation of existing factories and production capacity, continuously improving the added value of its main products. In addition, the company is actively expanding into new tracks. The AI driven computing power industry is experiencing an investment boom. Targeting this trend, they are transforming their existing production capacity and launching liquid cooled products. Currently, orders have been scheduled until June.

"With the increasing uncertainty in overseas markets, we should be more careful to tap potential markets." The relevant person in charge of Jiangsu Suhao Holding Group Co., Ltd. said that in recent years, enterprises have actively deployed in Southeast Asia, Africa, South America and other markets, and their exports to countries jointly building the "the Belt and Road" have accounted for more than 50%.

Gao Shiwang, spokesperson for the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electrical Products, pointed out that in the face of complex situations and challenges, mechanical and electrical foreign trade enterprises generally enhance their competitiveness by strengthening technological innovation, optimizing production and supply chain layout, strengthening brand building and mode transformation, and strengthening risk control and compliance.

Chinese lifestyle products accelerate the integration of "fan base" and Eastern aesthetics into global consumption

Chinese lifestyle products that embody Eastern aesthetics are accelerating their overseas expansion and becoming a new driving force for foreign trade growth.

With the launch of Longjing new tea domestically, there has also been a wave of "tea tasting fever" overseas. Li Cheng, the head of the e-commerce department of Hangzhou Tea Factory Co., Ltd., introduced that the overseas sales of tea have significantly increased this year, and West Lake Longjing is particularly popular. The change in purchasing preferences of overseas consumers from tea powder to original leaf tea reflects a deep identification with Chinese culture. The person in charge of Chabaidao stated that the new Chinese tea drink, which is based on traditional tea and blends modern flavors, is highly popular among overseas consumers. The company's stores in Busan, South Korea, Barcelona, Spain, and other places have been highly sought after since their opening.

Wang Jun introduced that the cultural craze that began with the "cloud" has also been transmitted to the consumer end. In the first quarter, thermos cups and tea were exported for 5 billion yuan and 2.7 billion yuan respectively. According to data from Taobao and Tmall, there are currently over 30000 tea category merchants selling overseas through the platform, with Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, South Korea and other places ranking among the top sellers. Tea sets and other peripheral products are also popular, achieving double-digit growth in Australia, Japan, Thailand, Kazakhstan and other places.

Zheng Wei, Associate Researcher at the China Service Outsourcing Research Center, stated that the strong momentum of China's cultural products going global is rooted in its profound historical and cultural heritage. From tea, beauty to digital cultural products, goods and services that embody Eastern aesthetics are accelerating their global presence. It is worth noting that the deep integration of digital technology and cultural creativity is giving rise to new driving forces for cultural globalization.