Guangdong's foreign trade exceeds 5 trln yuan for first time in H1

(ECNS) -- South China's Guangdong Province saw its total goods trade exceed 5 trillion yuan ($736 billion) for the first time in the first half of 2026, reaching 5.49 trillion yuan, up 20.8% year on year, the Guangdong branch of the General Administration of Customs of China said at a press conference in Guangzhou on Friday.

Guangdong's foreign trade accounted for 21.6% of China's total and contributed 944.71 billion yuan in incremental trade, making up 25.6% of the national growth. Exports rose 11.6% to 3.22 trillion yuan, while imports surged 36.8% to 2.27 trillion yuan.

Trade with emerging markets continued to expand. Guangdong's trade with ASEAN reached 857.42 billion yuan, up 13.3%, and with Latin America reached 277.35 billion yuan, up 4.5%.

Trade with traditional markets also grew. Guangdong's trade with Hong Kong reached 829.93 billion yuan, up 47.2%; with the European Union, 579.93 billion yuan (about $86.3 billion), up 6.9%; with the United States, 487.48 billion yuan, up 3.8%; and with the Republic of Korea, 307.02 billion yuan, up 40.3%.

Trade between Guangdong and Africa hit a record 178.44 billion yuan, up 23.3%, benefiting from China's zero-tariff policy for all African countries with diplomatic ties.

A total of 174,000 enterprises in Guangdong conducted foreign trade in the first half, of which 153,000 were private companies. Private enterprises accounted for 3.69 trillion yuan in trade, up 26.7%.

A customs survey of key foreign trade enterprises in Guangdong at the end of June showed that more companies reported an increase in export orders, with business confidence continuing to grow.

(By Tang Yuxian)