China Blue News: 'Preferred Port' Accelerates Again: Import and Export Volume between Ningbo and Central and Eastern Europe Exceeds 14 Billion RMB in Q1 2026

In the first quarter of 2026, Ningbo's economic and trade exchanges with Central and Eastern European countries have delivered an impressive "report card". According to statistics from Ningbo Customs, the total import and export volume between Ningbo and Central and Eastern European countries reached 14.5 billion yuan in the first quarter, an increase of 8% compared to the previous quarter; Among them, exports amounted to 13.1 billion yuan and imports amounted to 1.4 billion yuan. As the "bridgehead" of the China Central and Eastern European Countries Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Zone, Ningbo is continuously deepening its economic and trade ties with Central and Eastern European countries through more efficient logistics clearance, more favorable tariff policies, and more accurate information services.
　　
Experience of the "fast lane" where the ship has not yet arrived at the port but the goods have been released
　　
At 8:30 in the morning, the bell of the old Bund in Ningbo had just rung, and Chen Yun, the customs contact person of Ningbo Aoyunde Electric Appliance Co., Ltd., was already sitting in front of the workstation. On his computer screen, there is an import document information for a carbon brush product that has just been sent from Hungary. This batch of goods will be used for the production of domestic automotive parts, with tight delivery time and high requirements. A few minutes later, the system received a feedback prompt of "released".
Now using the customs' 'advance declaration' mode, the container ship carrying this batch of goods is still sailing on the East China Sea, and we have completed the import declaration procedures. As soon as the ship docks, we can arrange for pick-up and immediately send it to the production line without delay. The previously worried 'bottleneck' link has now become a 'fast lane', "Chen Yun sighed.
This smooth experience is not uncommon in Ningbo. With its unique port advantages and open genes, Ningbo has become the "preferred port" for Central and Eastern European goods to enter the Chinese market. In the first quarter of 2026, the import and export data between Ningbo and Central and Eastern European countries once again confirmed this hub position.
　　
A certificate of origin, leveraging the tens of millions of export markets
　　
Tariff preferences are another powerful engine driving bilateral trade. Since the implementation of the China Serbia Free Trade Agreement, a certain machinery company in Ningbo has continued to make good use of the policy dividend of certificate of origin and deeply cultivate the export market of Serbian lawn mowers. The company has long-term stable customers in Serbia and has actively applied for certificates of origin to enjoy tariff reductions since the agreement came into effect.
On April 7th, the company exported a batch of lawn mowers with a value exceeding 370000 yuan to Serbia. With the certificate of origin issued by Ningbo Customs under the China Serbia Free Trade Agreement, the company can enjoy a 2% tax reduction. In the first quarter of 2026, a total of 10 certificates of origin for the China Serbia Free Trade Agreement were applied for, involving goods worth 5.9 million yuan.
The relevant person in charge of the enterprise said, "The certificate of origin brings tangible tariff benefits to exported products, effectively reduces the import costs of overseas customers, significantly enhances the competitiveness of products in the local market, and further consolidates the cooperation relationship between the two parties. Our export volume to Serbia in the first quarter of last year was about 5 million yuan, while in the first quarter of this year it was nearly 6 million yuan, showing significant growth
This is a microcosm of Ningbo enterprises deeply cultivating the Central and Eastern European markets. In the first quarter of 2026, Ningbo Customs issued a total of 831 certificates of origin under the China Serbia Free Trade Agreement, involving goods worth 167 million yuan, an increase of 42.05% and 14.15% year-on-year, respectively.
　　
Empowering information services, doubling imports of agricultural and food products from Central and Eastern Europe
　　
Data shows that in the first quarter of 2026, Ningbo imported agricultural products from Central and Eastern European countries worth 67 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1.5 times. From grains from Poland to saffron from Greece, from honey from Serbia to wine from Bulgaria, more and more high-quality agricultural products from Central and Eastern Europe are entering the dining tables of Chinese consumers through the Ningbo port.
Behind this growth, it is inseparable from the cooperation between Ningbo Customs and the China Central and Eastern European Countries Agricultural Cooperation Promotion Association, which is committed to promoting the facilitation of agricultural and food product trade in Central and Eastern Europe through enhancing information exchange, consulting and answering questions. In order to promote the "introduction" of popular Central and Eastern European specialty agricultural and food products, Ningbo Customs has strengthened policy information services, continuously tracked the trade of agricultural and food products between China and Central and Eastern European countries, released 397 customs clearance guidelines and 1122 digital dynamic visual indicators related to the entry of Central and Eastern European agricultural and food products, and assisted enterprises in importing specialty agricultural and food products. In addition, Ningbo Customs has also established an application scenario for "Access Information Inquiry of Agricultural and Food Products Exported from Central and Eastern European Countries to China", which facilitates enterprises to "one-stop" search for access information and production information of products such as Polish wheat flour and canned salmon salad, and helps enterprises to carry out trade docking. At the same time, we will deepen the liaison mechanism and answer 9 inquiries from domestic and foreign government and enterprises such as the Bulgarian Ministry of Agriculture and the Embassy in Greece regarding the export of aquatic products and wooden packaging.
From "early declaration" to shorten customs clearance time, to certificate of origin to reduce trade costs, and to digital information services to break down information barriers, a series of innovative measures taken by Ningbo Customs are injecting continuous momentum into the economic and trade cooperation between Ningbo and Central and Eastern European countries. Standing at the node of spring 2026, this open city is writing a new chapter in China Central and Eastern European cooperation with a more steady pace.