Chengdu Daily: The scale of foreign trade entities and aviation imports and exports have both reached new highs. Where does the increase in Chengdu's foreign trade come from?
On January 19th, the latest Sichuan foreign trade "report card" was released. In the full year foreign trade data of 2025, two sets of data are particularly eye-catching: one is that the scale of foreign trade entities has increased by more than 10% year-on-year, breaking through 10000 for the first time and setting a new historical high; Secondly, the import and export of goods at Chengdu Airport Port has exceeded 700 billion yuan for the first time, setting a new historical high and increasing its proportion in the national air freight market.
Why can these two foreign trade data reach a historic high? What is the supporting force behind it? What kind of signal is being conveyed?
"Advancing, solving, optimizing and promoting" help+support policy awesome
Strengthening the confidence of enterprises in going global for development
Last year, our goods were exported for the first time and sold for over 10 million yuan in the first year. This year has just begun and we have received many foreign orders. It is expected that our export business will increase by at least 40% this year. "On Sunday, January 18th, Xie Chuanyang, Vice President of Chengdu New Green Source Agriculture Co., Ltd., did not take a break and worked with workers in the warehouse to sort and pack fresh fruits such as kiwi and citrus produced in Chengdu. Xie Chuanyang said that the company used to mainly engage in domestic trade business, and the ability to export and sell relied on "two forces".
"First, it is the help of the 'promotion of import, solution and optimization', and second, it is the awesome of the support policy." Xie Chuanyang said that the biggest challenge of fresh fruit export is the timeliness of circulation. If the timeliness of customs clearance and logistics is not high, it will lead to high consumption and low price, so he did not dare to touch international business easily before. However, after learning about these concerns, relevant departments such as Chengdu Customs took the initiative to come to our doorstep to discuss solutions. In order to improve customs clearance efficiency, customs officers went to the warehouse for inspection and sent dedicated personnel to guide the business and explain policies. The export business was done very smoothly
The main body of foreign trade is the "barometer" of foreign trade development and also the source of vitality for foreign trade development. Data shows that last year, there were 10329 import and export enterprises in Sichuan, surpassing 10000 for the first time, an increase of 13.8% year-on-year. Xiao Xiaowen, Deputy Director of the Statistical Analysis Department of Chengdu Customs, stated that the continuous expansion of foreign trade entities has laid a solid foundation for the future development of foreign trade.
Optimization of industrial structure+linkage of air channels
Open industries are heading in both directions along the 'Air Silk Road'
The rapid growth of import and export goods at Chengdu Airport Port was another highlight of Sichuan's foreign trade operations last year.
This indicates that the level of Chengdu International Aviation Hub continues to improve, and the aviation hub effect is becoming more prominent. The industrial linkage model of 'port+logistics+trade' is transforming the traffic of the aviation hub into an increment for foreign trade development. "Song Wenyuan, Chief Engineer of Zhongzhi Supply Chain Think Tank, believes that Chengdu is deeply implementing industrial circle building and strong chain, promoting the continuous optimization of industrial structure. The advantages of airworthiness industries such as electronic information, high-end manufacturing, aerospace, and biomedicine are becoming more and more obvious. In addition, the business environment of the aviation port is increasingly optimized, supporting open industries to move in both directions on the 'Air Silk Road'.
Last year, the Western Fresh Port Salmon Processing Plant, located adjacent to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, was officially put into operation, driving the gathering of upstream and downstream trade, processing, new retail and other enterprises in the fresh food industry chain, and gradually becoming a hub for imported salmon distribution throughout the country. Last year, Sichuan imported 1.6 billion yuan worth of fresh salmon, a year-on-year increase of 34.5%. Chengdu Air Port is the second largest air port for imported fresh salmon in China, second only to Shanghai Pudong.
At the other end of Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, the Chengdu Airport International Express Center is also a busy scene. Relying on the advantages of air ports and bonded logistics functions, new forms of cross-border e-commerce are rapidly developing here. Last year, the center imported and exported over 150 million shipments, a year-on-year increase of 16%, setting a new historical high.
Correspondingly, last year the Chengdu International Aviation Hub achieved a cargo throughput of 1.17 million tons, setting a new historical high with a year-on-year increase of 13.9%. Behind the growth of "traffic" at Chengdu airport, there is a globally accessible route network supporting it. Last year, Chengdu expanded its international routes by more than 10, and currently has a network of 83 regular direct international and regional routes connecting five continents and covering major hub destinations in Asia.