On April 16th, the "report card" for Guangdong's imports and exports in the first quarter of 2024 was released. According to statistics from the Guangdong Sub-administration of the General Administration of Customs, Guangdong's foreign trade volume totaled 2.04 trillion yuan in the first quarter, a 12% increase. This marks a historic high for the same period and Guangdong maintained its position as China's top province for foreign trade.

Both exports and imports in Guangdong saw double-digit growth, with an overall growth rate exceeding two digits, marking the best performance over the past 11 quarters. Regarding the main players in foreign trade, the number of enterprises with considerable foreign trade volume reached 101,000, with private enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones, contributing 1.28 trillion yuan to imports and exports. In terms of trading partners, Guangdong's trade with major partners continued to grow, with ASEAN remaining its largest trading partner. These data fully demonstrate the strong momentum and comprehensive competitiveness of Guangdong's foreign trade.

In the current environment of profound international changes and numerous challenges hampering global economic development, how has Guangdong's foreign trade remained so stable?

On the one hand, the large number of private enterprises has supported the "foundation" of Guangdong's foreign trade. Data shows that in 2023, the number of enterprises engaged in import and export business in Guangdong exceeded 130,000 for the first time, with private enterprises accounting for over 80%. In the first quarter of 2024, imports and exports by private enterprises, mainly small and medium-sized ones, reached 1.28 trillion yuan, a 19.2% increase, accounting for 62.9% of Guangdong's total foreign trade value, up 3.8 percentage points from the same period last year. In the face of complex and changing foreign trade environments, private enterprises have adjusted their strategic directions in a timely manner, promoting continuous optimization of the foreign trade structure. Over the past year, exports of Guangdong's "new three," represented by lithium-ion batteries, solar cells, and electric passenger cars, collectively increased by 33.7%.

On the other hand, the continuous improvement of the industrial chain and supply chain has further strengthened the advantages of Guangdong's foreign trade. In recent years, intermediate goods, which account for more than half of Guangdong's overall foreign trade, have grown rapidly in trade value, reaching 1.12 trillion yuan in imports and exports in the first quarter of this year. It drove overall imports and exports in Guangdong to increase by 8.8 percentage points. While strongly supporting the recovery and improvement of foreign trade, it has also accelerated the integration of Guangdong with related countries and regions in the industrial chain and supply chain.

Guangdong's foreign trade got off to a strong start in the first quarter, with promising momentum. Despite the challenges faced by Guangdong's high-quality development of foreign trade, with favorable factors such as increasing external demand and sustained improvement in the economic fundamentals of China, there is every reason to expect that events like the Canton Fair and "Guangdong Trade Global" will continue to generate new orders, bolstering enterprise confidence and providing solid support for the development of Guangdong's foreign trade in 2024.

Source :Yangcheng Evening News

广东一季度外贸继续稳居中国第一

4月16日，2024年一季度广东进出口“成绩单”出炉：据海关总署广东分署统计，一季度广东外贸进出口2.04万亿元，增长12%，进出口规模创出历史同期新高，继续稳居中国第一。

广东出口、进口实现“双增长”，整体增速突破两位数，创出11个季度以来最好表现；从外贸主体看，有进出口实绩的外贸企业数量达到10.1万家，以“中小微”为主的民营企业进出口达到1.28万亿元；从贸易对象看，广东对主要贸易伙伴均保持增长，东盟继续保持第一大贸易伙伴位置……可以说，这些数据充分展现了广东外贸的强劲动能和综合竞争力。

在国际环境发生深刻变化、世界经济发展面临众多严峻挑战的当下，广东外贸何以如此“稳阵”？

一方面，数量庞大的民营企业撑住了广东外贸的“基本盘”。数据显示，2023年广东有进出口业务的企业数量首次突破13万家，当中民营企业数量占比超过八成。2024年一季度，以“中小微”为主的民营企业进出口达到1.28万亿元，增长19.2%，占广东外贸进出口总值的62.9%，较去年同期提升3.8个百分点。特别是，面对复杂多变的外贸环境，民营企业还可以及时调整战略方向，推动外贸结构持续优化。过去一年，广东以锂离子蓄电池、太阳能电池、电动载人汽车为代表的“新三样”出口合计增长高达33.7%。

另一方面，持续完善的产业链、供应链进一步塑造了广东外贸的优势。近年来，占广东外贸整体超五成的中间品快速增长，今年一季度进出口1.12万亿元，拉动广东整体进出口增长8.8个百分点。在有力支撑外贸整体回暖向好的同时，也在加快广东与相关国家和地区的产业链供应链深度互联。

广东一季度外贸开局有力、起势良好。尽管广东外贸高质量发展面临的挑战依然不容轻视，但在外部需求改善、国内经济基本面持续向好等有利因素带动下，完全有理由期待，广交会、“粤贸全球”等不断促成新订单，企业信心持续增强，将为2024年广东外贸发展提供坚实支撑。

文｜李妹妍
译｜刘佳慧