14.9% growth rate explains the trend of foreign trade structure towards novelty and excellence
On May 9th, the General Administration of Customs released the latest data on the import and export of goods trade. In the first four months of 2026, China's total import and export value of goods trade was RMB 16.23 trillion, an increase of 14.9% year-on-year (the same below). Among them, exports amounted to 9.33 trillion yuan, an increase of 11.3%; Imports amounted to 6.9 trillion yuan, an increase of 20%.
In the context of sustained global economic pressure and complex geopolitical changes, the 14.9% growth rate reflects the distinct characteristics of China's stable, dynamic, and strong momentum in foreign trade scale.
The stable foundation of foreign trade is mainly reflected in the strong resilience of the industrial and supply chains, as well as the continuous expansion of the "circle of friends".
According to data disclosed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, China has 41 major industrial categories, 207 medium industrial categories, and 666 small industrial categories, making it the only country in the world to have all industrial categories in the United Nations Industrial Classification; Among the 504 major industrial products in the world, China ranks first in the production of most of them. At the same time, in cutting-edge fields such as artificial intelligence, high-end equipment, and biomedicine, China is focusing on strengthening key core technology research and continuously promoting the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation. These factors are key to the strong resilience and high security of the industrial and supply chains, providing strong support for building a solid foundation for foreign trade development.
At the same time, the foreign trade "circle of friends" continues to expand. According to data disclosed by the Ministry of Commerce on January 26th, China has signed 24 free trade agreements with 31 countries and regions. China is steadily advancing the construction of a high standard free trade zone network, enhancing stability through diversified layout.
The vitality of foreign trade is mainly reflected in the collaborative efforts of various business entities and their respective strengths: private enterprises fully leverage the role of the main force of foreign trade and innovation, and accelerate the creation of incremental space for goods trade import and export with flexible mechanisms and rapid response capabilities; State owned enterprises play a core role in the trade of bulk commodities such as grain, energy, and minerals, promoting the continuous growth of the country's reserve strength; Foreign invested enterprises are actively cultivating the Chinese market while serving the world, introducing high-quality capital and advanced technology to domestic technology intensive industries, and becoming a key link between Chinese manufacturing and global merchants.
The strong momentum of foreign trade is mainly reflected in the "new and optimized" structure and balanced development of imports and exports. Since the beginning of this year, high-tech and high value-added products such as vehicles, aircraft, ships and transportation equipment, and electromechanical products have taken the lead, highlighting the structural transformation of China's goods trade exports from "quantity increase" to "quality improvement"; At the same time, the domestic consumer market is steadily growing, with imports of agricultural products, jewelry, precious metals, and other goods growing rapidly. Both import and export sectors are simultaneously exerting efforts to continuously inject growth momentum into foreign trade.
Foreign trade is an important lever for expanding high-level opening-up to the outside world. To promote stable and high-quality foreign trade, China is continuously promoting the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade, assisting foreign trade enterprises in expanding their markets, responding to challenges, accelerating the high-quality development of e-commerce, and actively participating in the formulation of international standards. In the future, with the further integration of the Chinese economy and the world economy, China's foreign trade will surely be able to adapt and seek new opportunities, and steadily move forward in a complex environment.