Beijing saw its foreign trade volume hit a record high of 1.83 trillion yuan ($256.61 billion) in the first half of 2024, data from the local customs bureau revealed. Beijing Customs revealed that the city’s trade volumes increased 3.6 percent year-on-year in H1 and accounted for 8.7 percent of China’s total trade volume.
Emerging industries boost Beijing’s trade growth
In the first six months of 2024, emerging industries stood out as key contributors to export growth in Beijing, accounting for 27.8 percent of the city’s total export volume. Among these emerging industries, the lithium-ion battery and mobile phone sectors reported export increases of 92.3 percent and 57.8 percent, respectively.
From January to June, the total export value of Beijing’s local-brand products reached 113.48 billion yuan, recording a 17.9 percent growth.
Xizang sees trade surge
In addition to Beijing’s trade growth, the latest official data also reveals that foreign trade in southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region surged 132.4 percent year-on-year in H1 of 2024. The region’s total import and export value surpassed 3.8 billion yuan ($522.7 million) during the same period.
Xizang’s exports grew 122.9 percent year-on-year to over 3.2 billion yuan, while its imports climbed to 591 million yuan, up 202 percent year-on-year during H1.
Read: Japan posts first trade surplus in three months in June at $1.4 billion
China posts record trade surplus in June
Last week, official data also revealed that China posted a record $99 billion trade surplus last month. Exports in June grew at their fastest rate in 15 months, while the weakness of China’s domestic economy impacted imports.
Exports grew by 8.6 percent annually in June to $308 billion. During the first half of 2024, China’s exports reached $1.7 trillion, up by 3.6 percent year-on-year.
The data also reveals that the value of auto exports rose by 18.9 percent during H1 and by 25.3 percent in volume amid lower export prices. Meanwhile, household electronics sales climbed by 14.8 percent in value terms but showed even faster volume growth of 24.9 percent. Finally, semiconductor export values rose 21.6 percent year-on-year, and by 9.5 percent in terms of volume.
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