Customs data released on January 14th revealed that in 2025, China's total import and export value of goods reached 45.47 trillion yuan, marking a year-on-year increase of 3.8% and representing the ninth consecutive year of growth since 2017. Achieving such results amidst a complex and volatile international environment is both extraordinary and hard-won, fully reflecting the international competitiveness of China's foreign trade sector. This performance also serves as a testament to the fact that "China's economy possesses a solid foundation, numerous advantages, strong resilience, and vast potential, with the underlying conditions and fundamental trend of long-term improvement remaining unchanged."
Foreign trade, which connects domestic and international markets and resources, acts as a powerful engine and booster for China's economic growth. Exports totaled 26.99 trillion yuan, surging 6.1% year-on-year, while imports reached 18.48 trillion yuan, growing by 0.5%... In 2025, China's total import and export value ascended to a new level, achieving a record high in scale, greater market diversification, and a shift towards newer, higher-quality exports, demonstrating robust developmental vitality.
It is particularly noteworthy that foreign trade achieved growth for the ninth consecutive year, representing the longest sustained expansion since China's accession to the World Trade Organization. Despite declining international market prices, China's imports maintained growth for three consecutive quarters starting from the second quarter. This series of data indicates that the formidable vitality of foreign trade provides solid support for the economy, continuously laying a sturdy foundation for China's economic development; the great ship of the Chinese economy will brave the winds and waves, forging ahead steadily.
The "highlight-filled" foreign trade report card showcases the firm stance of the Chinese economy in anchoring its course through turbulent and challenging global conditions. In 2025, China proactively expanded its "circle of friends" in trade, solidifying a pattern of "stabilizing traditional markets while expanding volume in emerging markets." Data shows that China's total import and export value with ASEAN, Latin America, and Africa reached 7.55 trillion yuan, 3.93 trillion yuan, and 2.49 trillion yuan, respectively, growing by 8%, 6.5%, and 18.4%. China now has trade relations with over 240 countries and regions, with import and export volumes increasing with more than 190 of them.
In 2025, China's exports trended towards innovation and quality, with high-tech product exports growing by 13.2%, exports of the "new three" products surging by 27.1%, and wind turbine exports increasing by 48.7%... This simultaneous improvement in both volume and quality allows one to genuinely feel the powerful resilience and vitality of the Chinese economy through these encouraging figures. Pressing forward under pressure and moving towards innovation and quality, foreign trade navigates winds and waves amidst change with determination; an open China represents an opportunity for the world.
In 2025, the number of business entities in China with import and export records exceeded 780,000. Among them, private enterprises continued to act as the "main engine" of foreign trade, with imports and exports growing 7.1% year-on-year, raising their share of the total import and export value to 57.3%. Imports and exports by foreign-invested enterprises grew by 3.7%, maintaining growth for the seventh consecutive quarter.
Reflecting on the highly unusual and extraordinary period of the "14th Five-Year Plan," China's total import and export value successively surpassed the 40 trillion and 45 trillion yuan thresholds, reaching 45.47 trillion yuan in 2025—an increase of 41.1% compared to 2020, with an average annual growth rate of 7.1%. Today's China is opening its doors ever wider, "Chinese products" are widely popular, and China continues to be fertile ground for investment and business, constituting the greatest confidence and assurance for China to share opportunities and pursue common development with the world.
"A keen beginning must aim for a successful end; those who succeed plan carefully from the start." As this year marks the beginning of the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, external uncertainties and unpredictable factors are increasing, and the pressure to stabilize foreign trade remains significant. However, China's advantages in institutional strength, market size, industrial system, and talent resources are becoming more pronounced. With more diversified trading partners and significantly enhanced risk resistance capabilities, the fundamental base of China's foreign trade remains solid. Striving forward in the "15th Five-Year Plan" period and marching confidently on a new journey, adhering to a diversified layout, resolutely moving towards the high end of the value chain, and continuously optimizing the development posture will make the steps of China's foreign trade innovation and development more robust. This will ensure a good start and a solid first step for the "15th Five-Year Plan," writing a new chapter in the "two miracles" of rapid economic development and long-term social stability.