A large number of Chinese-made vehicles gather at the Lianyungang Port in East China’s Jiangsu Province on May 28, 2026, preparing for shipment and export. Photo: VCG

China’s foreign trade has maintained the steady growing momentum, with the value of goods trade jumping by 15.3 percent year-on-year to reach 20.68 trillion yuan ($3.05 trillion) in the first five months of 2026, latest data from the General Administration of Customs (GAC) showed on Tuesday.

The robust performance was driven by a number of positive factors, including strong global demand for China’s high-tech and electronic products as well as a series of preferential trade arrangement, a Chinese observer pointed out, stressing that these figures underscore China’s irreplaceable role in underpinningglobal supply chain stability and resilience. 

In May alone, China’s foreign trade in goods expanded 16.9 percent year-on-year to 4.45 trillion yuan ($656 billion). Among which, exports grew by 13.8 percent year-on-year in May, and imports surged by 21.5 percent, the data showed.

Lv Daliang, director of the GAC's Department of Statistics and Analysis, said that, by the end of May, China’s monthly foreign trade volume has exceeded 4 trillion yuan for three consecutive months, sustaining a positive trajectory, according to a report by the China Central Television (CCTV). 

Since the beginning of 2026, China has vigorously deepened pragmatic economic and trade cooperation with its partners, and China is always a stabilizing force for global trade, he said.

Tian Yun, a Beijing-based economist, told the Global Times on Tuesday that against the backdrop of a global economy facing pressure and volatile geopolitical situation, the “stunning” growth rate has manifested that “China’s foreign trade engine is built on a stable and solid foundation, displaying new vitality and a strong growth momentum.” 

Tian highlighted a number of factors supporting the stellar growth, including the global artificial intelligence (AI) wave which drove surging demand for a variety of China’s high-tech products, ranging from robotics, AI accelerators, and data center equipment to photovoltaic panels and intelligent manufacturing systems. Meanwhile, China's economic cooperation with other economies as well as deeper integration into the global industrial chain has been consolidating and strengthening, Tian noted.

In breakdown, China’s imports and exports with ASEAN, the EU, and Africa grew by 16.6 percent, 10.3 percent, and 18.2 percent, respectively, in the first five months. And trade with the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) partner countries reached 10.57 trillion yuan in the January-May period, or an increase of 13.6 percent year-on-year. 

Since May 1, China has fully rolled out zero-tariff treatment for all African countries that have set updiplomatic relations with China. So in the first five months, China’s trade with Africa hit 1.14 trillion yuan, recording an 18.2 percent year-on-year increase. The figure breaks the 1-trillion-yuan mark for the same period for the first time. In May, China’s imports from Africa alone reached 951.3 billion yuan, up 15 percent year-on-year, extending the growth streak to nine months,customs data showed. 

As this year marks the APEC’s “China Year,” China’s imports and exports with other APEC economies totaled 12.31 trillion yuan in the first five months, surgingby 17.4 percent year-on-year, customs data showed. This trade volume accounted for nearly 60 percent of China’s total foreign trade, indicatingthe economic and trade cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region continues to thrive.

Global Times