In the first quarter of 2026, my country’s foreign trade achieved a good start, with the scale of import and export hitting a record high for the same period in history.
According to data from the General Administration of Customs, the total import and export value of goods trade in the first quarter reached 11.84 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15%, and the quarterly growth rate hit the highest in the past five years.
Private enterprises and high-tech products have become the core driving forces for foreign trade growth.
The following are the core data details for the first quarter:
| Indicators | Values | Year-on-year growth |
|---|---|---|
| Total import and export value | 11.84 trillion yuan | +15% |
| Exports | 6.85 trillion yuan | +11.9% |
| Imports | 4.99 trillion yuan | +19.6% |
| Private enterprises accounted for 57.3% | +16.2% |
It is worth noting that this is the highest quarterly growth rate in the past five years, exceeding market expectations.
Let’s take a look at the latest developments in April (Last 24h):
1. Cross-border trade facilitation policies continue to increase.
The General Administration of Customs released special action policies and measures for cross-border trade facilitation in 2026, focusing on key tasks such as optimizing trade in goods, vigorously developing trade in services, innovating digital trade and green trade.
This move will provide more convenience and development opportunities for foreign trade enterprises and help further promote the development of my country’s foreign trade.
2. Private enterprises are still the “main force”.
In the first quarter, the import and export of private enterprises was 6.78 trillion yuan, an increase of 16.2%, and their proportion further increased to 57.3%.
Exports of ships and offshore equipment increased by 41.3%, and aerospace equipment increased by 25.6%.
Private enterprises are playing an increasingly important role in my country’s foreign trade, and their vitality and competitiveness are constantly increasing.
3. Exports of high-tech products are strong.
Automobile exports increased by 54.2%, ship exports increased by 45.2%, high-tech product exports increased by 25.3%, and “three new items” (new energy vehicles, photovoltaics, and lithium batteries) exports increased by 27.1%.
The strong export of high-tech products shows that my country’s innovation capabilities in the field of science and technology are constantly improving, and the international competitiveness of its products is also constantly increasing.
4. Regional foreign trade performance is outstanding.
Guangdong’s import and export in the first quarter was 2.54 trillion yuan, leading the country; the transformation and upgrading of traditional foreign trade enterprises in Jiangsu and Zhejiang showed results; China-Europe freight trains (Shenzhen) opened 64 trains in the first quarter, a year-on-year increase of 72.97%.
Different regions have their own characteristics in the development of foreign trade, and they jointly promote the overall development of my country’s foreign trade.
5. Expand the capacity and improve the quality of the comprehensive bonded area.
The comprehensive bonded zone reform measures continue to advance, injecting new impetus into high-level opening up.
Data show that the import and export of the Comprehensive Bonded Zone increased significantly in the first quarter.
The development of comprehensive bonded areas is of great significance to improving my country’s opening-up level and promoting trade facilitation.
For practitioners, there are the following suggestions:
1. Pay attention to policy dividends: The special action to facilitate cross-border trade provides more convenience for export companies. Paying attention to the latest policy trends and seizing policy opportunities in a timely manner will help companies develop better.
2. Seize new momentum: Exports of high-tech products and green products are growing strongly, and relevant categories can be focused on to adapt to changes in market demand.
3. Compliance management: With the tightening of policies, it is recommended to prepare for compliance in advance and pay attention to compliance requirements such as origin and labeling to avoid losses to enterprises due to compliance issues.
4. Diversified markets: Private enterprises are active and there is a lot of room for development in emerging markets. They can make appropriate arrangements to reduce market risks and expand the development space of enterprises.
