China's Foreign Trade Jumps 14.9% in Jan-April 2026

China's foreign trade rose sharply in the first four months of 2026, driven by strong import growth and continued expansion in trade with ASEAN and Belt and Road partner economies, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China.

China's total goods trade reached 16.23 trillion yuan between January and April, up 14.9% year-on-year. Exports increased 11.3% to 9.33 trillion yuan, while imports climbed 20% to 6.9 trillion yuan.

In April alone, China's total goods trade rose 14.2% from a year earlier to 4.38 trillion yuan. Exports grew 9.8% to 2.48 trillion yuan, while imports advanced 20.6% to 1.9 trillion yuan.

By trade category, general trade totaled 9.82 trillion yuan in the first four months of the year, up 8.5% year-on-year. Processing trade increased 21.3% to 3.08 trillion yuan, while bonded logistics trade surged 38.7% to 2.81 trillion yuan.

ASEAN remained China's largest trading partner during the period, with bilateral trade rising 15.7% to 2.75 trillion yuan. Trade between China and the European Union increased 13.2% to 2.01 trillion yuan.

In contrast, China-U.S. trade declined 12.9% year-on-year to 1.25 trillion yuan.

Trade with countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative totaled 8.28 trillion yuan in the January-April period, marking a 13.5% increase from a year earlier.

Private enterprises continued to account for the largest share of China's foreign trade. Their imports and exports rose 15.9% year-on-year to 9.31 trillion yuan during the first four months of 2026. Foreign-invested enterprises recorded 4.72 trillion yuan in trade, up 15.4%, while state-owned enterprises posted 2.16 trillion yuan, an increase of 9.8%.

In terms of major export categories, shipments of mechanical and electrical products rose 17.6% year-on-year to 5.92 trillion yuan. Exports of labor-intensive products fell 2.6% to 1.26 trillion yuan, while agricultural product exports edged up 2% to 240.15 billion yuan.

On the import side, purchases of mechanical and electrical products increased 23.6% year-on-year to 2.76 trillion yuan. Crude oil imports reached 185 million metric tons, up 1.3% from a year earlier, while agricultural product imports rose 10.3% to 475.73 billion yuan.