Xina: Visió econòmica i política
Thanks to its enormous trade surplus over the past few years, China has become the world's largest exporter and ranks second among the world’s largest importers. Despite its strict policies, the country is fairly open to foreign trade, which represented 37% of its GDP in 2022 (World Bank). In the same year, China remained the largest trader of goods throughout the world for the sixth consecutive year. China's main exports include telephones (7.7%), automatic data-processing machines (5.2%), electronic integrated circuits (4.3%), semiconductors (1.8%), and electronic accumulators (1.6%). On the other hand, the country mainly imports electronic integrated circuits (15.3%), petroleum oils (13.5%), iron ores (4.7%), petroleum gas (3.3%), and gold (2.8% - data Comtrade).
In 2022, exports were directed mostly towards the United States (16.2%), Hong Kong SAR, China (8.3%), Japan (4.8%), South Korea (4.5%), and Vietnam (4.1%); whereas imports came chiefly from South Korea (7.4%), Japan (6.8%), the United States (6.6%), Australia (5.2%), and Russia (4.2% - data Comtrade). In the same year, China's trade in goods with the ASEAN, the EU, and the U.S. respectively surged 15%, 5.6%, and 3.7% to CNY 6.52 trillion, CNY 5.65 trillion, and CNY 5.05 trillion. China's trade with countries along the Belt and Road rose 19.4% year-on-year and accounted for 32.9% of the nation's total foreign trade, up 3.2 percentage points. The country's trade with the other 14 members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership increased by 7.5% (data General Administration of Customs). On the 15th of November 2020, China signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with 14 other Indo-Pacific countries. This free trade agreement is the largest trade deal in history, covering 30 per cent of the global economy. It includes the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and ASEAN’s free trade agreement partners (Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea). The RCEP covers goods, services, investment, economic and technical cooperation. It also creates new rules for electronic commerce, intellectual property, government procurement, competition, and small and medium-sized enterprises.
Trade has become an increasingly important part of China’s overall economy, and it has been a significant tool used for economic modernisation. As reported by WTO, in 2022, exports of goods and services reached USD 3.59 trillion and USD 424 billion, respectively (+7% and +8.1% year-on-year). Imports of goods totalled USD 2.71 trillion, and those of services USD 465 billion (+1% and +8.9% year-on-year). According to the World Bank, the overall balance of trade was positive by 3.2% of GDP (from +2.6% one year earlier). In 2023, the country's foreign trade stood at CNY 41.76 trillion (about USD 5.87 trillion ), according to preliminary figures from the General Administration of Customs (GAC). Exports grew 0.6% y-o-y to CNY 23.77 trillion, while imports edged down 0.3% from one year earlier to CNY 17.99 trillion.
Foreign Trade Values | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
Imports of Goods (million USD) | 2,078,386 | 2,065,962 | 2,679,412 | 2,706,507 | 2,556,802 |
Exports of Goods (million USD) | 2,499,457 | 2,589,952 | 3,316,022 | 3,544,434 | 3,380,024 |
Imports of Services (million USD) | 500,680 | 381,088 | 426,998 | 465,053 | 551,995 |
Exports of Services (million USD) | 283,192 | 280,629 | 394,273 | 424,056 | 381,121 |
Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data
Foreign Trade Indicators | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) | 37.6 | 35.9 | 34.8 | 37.3 | 38.1 |
Trade Balance (million USD) | 380,074 | 392,993 | 511,103 | 562,706 | 668,633 |
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) | 87,905 | 131,844 | 358,573 | 461,494 | 576,330 |
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 18.5 | 17.5 | 16.2 | 17.4 | 17.5 |
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 19.1 | 18.4 | 18.6 | 19.9 | 20.7 |
Source: World Bank ; Latest available data
Foreign Trade Forecasts | 2023 | 2024 (e) | 2025 (e) | 2026 (e) | 2027 (e) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) | -0.3 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) | 3.0 | 4.4 | 1.6 | 3.9 | 3.7 |
Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data
Note: (e) Estimated Data
Main Customers (% of Exports) |
2023 |
United States | 14.8% |
Hong Kong SAR, China | 8.1% |
Japan | 4.7% |
South Korea | 4.4% |
Vietnam | 4.1% |
India | 3.5% |
Russia | 3.3% |
Germany | 3.0% |
Netherlands | 3.0% |
Malaysia | 2.6% |
Mexico | 2.4% |
United Kingdom | 2.3% |
Singapore | 2.3% |
Thailand | 2.2% |
Australia | 2.2% |
Indonesia | 1.9% |
Brazil | 1.7% |
United Arab Emirates | 1.6% |
Philippines (the) | 1.6% |
Canada | 1.3% |
See More Countries | 63.9% |
Main Suppliers (% of Imports) |
2023 |
United States | 6.5% |
South Korea | 6.3% |
Japan | 6.3% |
Australia | 6.1% |
Russia | 5.1% |
Brazil | 4.8% |
Germany | 4.2% |
China This flow is explained by the way local Customs Authorities report trade with overseas or special territories (e.g. Hong Kong or Taiwan in the case of China, French West Indies in the case of France, etc) as well as the treatment of re-imported (or re-exported) products, which get out (or enter) of the country for a limited time, with the intention of being re-imported (or re-exported) without significant transformation overseas. | 4.1% |
Malaysia | 4.0% |
Vietnam | 3.6% |
Indonesia | 2.9% |
Saudi Arabia | 2.5% |
Switzerland | 2.1% |
Thailand | 2.0% |
Canada | 1.7% |
Chile | 1.7% |
United Arab Emirates | 1.5% |
France | 1.5% |
Iraq | 1.4% |
South Africa | 1.3% |
See More Countries | 69.8% |
Source: Comtrade, 2024. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
Source: Comtrade, 2024. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
To go further, check out our service Import-Export Flows.
317.3 bn USD of services exported in 2021 | |
40.53% | |
27.39% | |
15.98% | |
4.86% | |
3.70% | |
3.57% | |
1.58% | |
1.44% | |
0.49% | |
0.45% |
436.1 bn USD of services imported in 2021 | |
33.63% | |
25.09% | |
12.16% | |
10.75% | |
9.17% | |
4.44% | |
2.23% | |
1.01% | |
0.76% | |
0.75% |
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2024. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
Vols fer algun comentari sobre aquest contingut? Escriu-nos.
© eexpand, Tots els drets reservats.
Actualitzacions: July 2024
Utilitzem cookies per assegurar la teva connexió i fer estadístiques sobre el nombre de visites. Per obtenir més informació sobre les cookies i saber com rebutjar-les, visita la nostra pàgina de política de cookies .
Aquesta finestra emergent et permet definir la teva preferència de cookies i decidir quin tipus de cookies vols permetre al teu dispositiu.