The Guangzhou Port in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province, which opened a direct route to Peru's Chancay Port on April 29, 2025 Photo: VCG

China's ports posted solid growth in foreign trade throughput in 2025, with nationwide foreign trade container handling rising by nearly 10 percent year on year, while overall port cargo volumes linked to external trade also recorded strong gains, underscoring the steady expansion of China's trade flows and logistics activity, data from the Ministry of Transport (MOT) showed in a Friday press conference.

Overall, China's transport economy remained stable and improved steadily in 2025, with port throughput emerging as a fast-growing indicator. Foreign trade container handling at ports rose by 9.8 percent, reflecting resilient external trade momentum.

Major Chinese ports have recently released their full-year foreign trade figures, with several reporting record-high container throughput levels.
Shenzhen Customs said on Monday that Shenzhen Port handled 33.16 million TEUs of foreign trade containers in 2025, up 6.41 percent year on year and marking a historical high, local media outlet Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported.

Shenzhen Port currently operates 295 global shipping routes, with international liner services connecting more than 300 ports in over 100 countries and regions worldwide. Its container throughput and global connectivity remain the highest among ports in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, supporting high-quality foreign trade growth, the report said.

Guangzhou Port handled more than 696 million tons of cargo in 2025, while container throughput surpassed 28 million TEUs, keeping it among the world's top six ports, according to Xinhua News Agency. Foreign trade cargo throughput grew 10.73 percent, while foreign trade container volumes rose by nearly 20 percent.

Ningbo-Zhoushan Port handled more than 1.4 billion tons of cargo in 2025, ranking first globally for the 17th consecutive year, while annual container throughput exceeded 43 million TEUs, placing it third worldwide, China Media Group reported. 

By the end of 2025, the port operated 309 container routes linking more than 700 ports in over 200 countries and regions, with nearly 300 cargo vessels calling daily. Its port connectivity index ranked second globally.

In 2025, the nation's foreign trade scale hit a new high, with total goods imports and exports exceeding 45 trillion yuan ($6.3 trillion), consolidating China's position as the world's largest trader of goods, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs.

Also, China's trade structure became more diversified, with the country conducting trade with more than 240 countries and regions and posting import and export growth with over 190 of them. Trade with Belt and Road partner countries reached 23.6 trillion yuan in 2025, up 6.3 percent year on year, accounting for 51.9 percent of the nation's total trade, according to customs data.


Global Times