In the first quarter of 2026, my country’s foreign trade achieved a good start in the “15th Five-Year Plan” with a year-on-year growth of 15%.
However, the external environment is complex and severe, with global demand shrinking and geopolitical conflicts intensifying. The old “old path” of relying on scale expansion and price competition no longer works.
So, how will the foreign trade stabilization policy be “improved”?
This is not just a policy adjustment, but a profound change from concept to action.
We can see the true picture of this change from five key dimensions.
From an import perspective, policies are “precisely drip-feeding” key industries.
In the past, import tariff adjustments may have focused more on macro balance, but now the policy is like a “scalpel” that accurately cuts into the pain points of industrial chain upgrading.
In the field of advanced technology, the 2025 tariff adjustment plan implements a tentative import tax rate lower than the most-favored nation tax rate for 935 commodities, which clearly reduces tariffs on cyclic olefin polymers, special-purpose vehicle automatic transmissions and other commodities, directly serving the upgrading of the manufacturing industry.
In the field of green and people’s livelihood, the policy simultaneously reduces tariffs on ethane and partially recycled copper and aluminum raw materials to promote a green cycle, and reduces tariffs on key medical products such as CAR-T tumor therapy viral vectors and artificial blood vessels by 2-3 percentage points to protect people’s livelihood during development.
For companies, this is more than just cost reduction.
The General Administration of Customs has reduced the import tariff on recycled black powder for lithium-ion batteries from 6.5% to 3%, which can save tens of millions of yuan in costs for relevant industry chain companies every year. More importantly, it has expanded raw material supply channels and reduced dependence on primary minerals.
Quanzhou Xingda Shoes and Clothing Materials Co., Ltd. successfully developed Glinka carbon fiber through cooperation with the research institute and using imported technology ideas. The product is in short supply.
This model of “technology introduction + local innovation” is becoming the norm for high-end manufacturing to break through bottlenecks.
For export companies, the core of the policy is “forging long plates.”
In the past, “everything could be sold”, but now we have to “sell better, greener and smarter”.
Policies guide resources to be concentrated in advantageous industries and build new barriers to competition.
Data confirms the trend: From January to February 2026, my country’s “three new items” (new energy vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic modules) exports increased by 50.7% year-on-year, becoming the core engine of foreign trade growth.
This is not an accident, but the result of continued policy focus.
In terms of systematic support, at the national level, the “Implementation Plan for the High-Quality Development of Energy-Saving Equipment (2026-2028)” is implemented, with the goal of increasing the proportion of new energy-saving industrial refrigeration equipment to 45% by 2028.
At the local level, Qianjiang City, for example, awards up to 500,000 yuan to outstanding foreign trade enterprises such as equipment manufacturing to support international certification of enterprises.
The effect is immediate.
Nearly 10,000 sets of Gree’s “optical air storage system” have been put into use in the Middle East, reducing carbon emissions by about 110,000 tons annually. Shanxi Dayun Automobile’s export volume will reach US$325 million in 2023, with average annual export volume increasing by more than 40%.
A more far-reaching impact is the construction of green barriers. Yunnan’s green aluminum enterprises have passed international certification, and the export price of their products is 29 times higher than that of traditional aluminum. Shandong’s zero-carbon park has achieved 100% green electricity supply for electrolytic aluminum, successfully avoiding EU carbon tariffs.
Policies are helping companies turn environmental protection costs into competitive advantages.
From the perspective of changes in trade patterns, policies are making every effort to “unblock capillaries.”
Improving the quality of foreign trade cannot rely solely on large enterprises, but must also activate the vast number of small, medium and micro enterprises.
New business formats such as cross-border e-commerce are the “digital highway” for policies to empower small and medium-sized enterprises.
The state has established a framework, and six departments including the Ministry of Commerce have promoted the high-quality development of the cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zone, developed new models such as “China-Europe freight trains + cross-border e-commerce”, supported the construction of overseas warehouses, and improved smart logistics platforms.
For detailed local implementation, Yunnan Province has issued 14 special policies, covering seven major directions including talent cultivation, entity development, and overseas warehouse construction, forming a full chain of support.
Digital tools have significantly improved the operational efficiency of small and medium-sized enterprises.
The case shows that after a cross-border hardware wholesaler in Zhejiang used the ERP system, the order error rate dropped from 12% to 0.5%, and the delivery time increased by 50%.
Jiaxing’s “9610” cross-border e-commerce customs transfer model shortens customs clearance time by about 3 hours and reduces logistics costs by 25%.
However, bottlenecks remain prominent.
A Hunan company faced a funding gap of US$20 million when building an overseas warehouse in Africa. Domestic banks have long evaluation cycles for overseas projects, and financing difficulties are still a pain point.
At the same time, international trade rules are complex and high-end operations and compliance talents are scarce. Even in Yiwu, where e-commerce talents gather, 80,000 people will be trained in 2025, but it is still difficult to meet demand.
While the policy is “building roads”, it still needs to solve the problems of “refueling” and “drivers”.
From the perspective of market integration, the policy is intended to “create a dual-cycle operating system.”
The integration of domestic and foreign trade is not simply to transfer foreign trade products to domestic sales, but to create a “dual cycle operating system” that can flexibly switch and be more resistant to risks through the in-depth integration of rules, standards, and channels.
The national level sets the direction and relies on the national unified market to further promote the “same line, same standard and same quality” of domestic and foreign trade products.
In the Inner Mongolia Pilot Free Trade Zone and other platforms, we will build a comprehensive service platform integrating domestic and foreign trade to cultivate leading enterprises.
Local incentives promote transformation. Qianjiang City will provide subsidies of up to 30,000 yuan to companies that pass the “same line, same standard, same quality” certification for the first time.
This policy directly reduces the costs and risks of market switching.
A landmark development is that starting from April 1, 2026, the return model of cross-border e-commerce retail exports across customs zones will be promoted nationwide.
Enterprises do not need to return goods to the original export port when returning goods, and can flexibly choose any customs across the country to handle the goods.
Data shows that a total of 381,300 returns were processed during the previous pilot period, and the return cycle is expected to be shortened by half under the new regulations.
This means that the flexibility of enterprises to respond to international market fluctuations has been greatly enhanced, and domestic sales channels have truly become a reliable “cushion” and “growth pole.”
From the perspective of future competition, the policy layout is “new infrastructure for trade in services.”
Trade in goods is “hard power”, while trade in services is “soft power” and the key to future competitiveness.
The policy is to seize the commanding heights of service trade by building high-end platforms.
To build a core engine, Shanghai Pudong New Area released a three-year action plan for trade in services, aiming to exceed US$140 billion in service trade by 2028.
Lujiazui, Zhangjiang, Jinqiao and other regions have been endowed with differentiated functions such as international finance, technological innovation and intellectual property, and “intelligent manufacturing” services.
Focusing on high-growth areas, the effects of policies have emerged.
In 2025, the export of intellectual property royalties from Pudong biopharmaceutical companies will reach US$2.319 billion, a year-on-year surge of 201.88%.
At the national level, exports of knowledge-intensive services amounted to 1,832.12 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10.5%; overseas market revenue of self-developed games has exceeded 100 billion yuan for six consecutive years.
Behind this is profound institutional openness.
Pudong continues to promote the expansion and opening up of value-added telecommunications services, with exports of telecommunications computers and information services reaching US$8.427 billion in 2025.
Chongqing has built 16 trusted data spaces, among which automobile and motorcycle data spaces have been included in national pilot projects to empower the industrial chain through data compliance and circulation.
The policy is solving the core pain points of modern service industries such as cross-border data flow and intellectual property protection, laying the foundation for China to participate in and even lead the next generation of global trade rules.
Based on comprehensive judgment, the current policy to stabilize foreign trade and improve quality is a system upgrade with clear goals.
In the short term, the policy combination has taken effect, supporting a “good start” for foreign trade in the first quarter.
However, experts predict that as the base effect weakens, export growth may fall back. However, the industrialization of emerging markets, the global replenishment cycle and my country’s high-tech industry advantages will jointly support the resilience of foreign trade.
In the long term, the policy logic is very clear: shift from pursuing “scale expansion” to “improving quality and efficiency.”
Imports are no longer about buying for the sake of buying, but “replenishing blood” for industrial upgrading; exports are no longer based on price, but on “forging long boards” based on technology, greenness, and brands; the market is no longer biased towards one end, but “strengthening the bones” through the integration of domestic and foreign trade; momentum no longer relies solely on goods, but on “laying out the future” through service trade.
The ultimate goal is to transform China from the “world’s factory” into an indispensable “global supply chain stabilizer.”
In a global environment full of uncertainties, China’s foreign trade provides not only commodities, but also certain supply capabilities, continuous technological iterations and a complete industrial chain ecology.
This quality improvement journey is destined to be accompanied by challenges such as financing, talent, and compliance, but the direction is already anchored: only by improving quality can we transcend the cycle and win the future.
