Officials upbeat, turn focus to work ahead

Yu Jianhua

Head of the General Administration of Customs

China's foreign trade is expected to maintain an upward trend in the first half of 2024, laying a solid foundation and creating favorable conditions for achieving the annual goal of improving quality while keeping volume stable, said the head of the General Administration of Customs.

Yu Jianhua, head of the administration, said on Monday that since the start of the year, China's import and export activities have continued their upward trend.

The value of China's foreign trade surged to 6.6 trillion yuan ($918.5 billion) during the January-February period, setting a record for that period, GAC data showed.

Yu said that, in the meantime, the quality and value of foreign trade have been consistently on the rise. The growth rate of imports and exports with economies participating in the Belt and Road Initiative is noticeable, while emerging trends and formats in foreign trade, such as cross-border e-commerce and market procurement, are gaining strong momentum, he added.

"Looking at the trend, favorable factors are accumulating," Yu added.

Apart from strengthening policies and introducing more targeted measures to boost border trade this year, Yu said the administration will continue to keep a close eye on foreign trade conditions and conduct surveys on economic indicators to help exporters secure orders.