The head of the Service Trade Department of the Ministry of Commerce introduces the development of service trade from January to April 2026

From January to April 2026, the total import and export volume of services in China reached 2485.32 billion yuan (RMB), a year-on-year increase of 4.9%. Among them, exports amounted to 985 billion yuan, an increase of 15%; Imports amounted to 1500.32 billion yuan, a decrease of 0.8%. The trade deficit in services was 515.32 billion yuan, a decrease of 139.74 billion yuan compared to the same period last year. The main characteristics are as follows:

The export of knowledge intensive services has maintained rapid growth. From January to April, the import and export of knowledge intensive services reached 1104.18 billion yuan, an increase of 5.1%, accounting for 44.4% of the total import and export of services. The export of knowledge intensive services reached 544.09 billion yuan, an increase of 11.7%. Among them, personal cultural and entertainment services and intellectual property usage fees grew the fastest, with growth rates of 39.5% and 20.8%, respectively; The import of knowledge intensive services reached 560.09 billion yuan, a decrease of 0.7%.

The export of travel services and the import of transportation services are growing rapidly. From January to April, the export of travel services reached 147.15 billion yuan, an increase of 30.4%, with the fastest growth rate among the top five service export sectors; The import of transportation services reached 316.45 billion yuan, an increase of 24.9%, with the fastest growth rate among the top five service import sectors.