Ningbo's foreign trade surpasses 300b yuan in Q1

Containers stockpiled at Ningbo Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/WeChat account: nbfb0574]

Ningbo's imports and exports were valued at 304.44 billion yuan ($46.84 billion) in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 17 percent year-on-year, according to official statistics from Ningbo Customs.

Specifically, its exports totaled 195.63 billion yuan, rising 20.4 percent year-on-year, while its import volume amounted to 108.81 billion yuan, an uptick of 11.4 percent.

The stable growth seen during the three-month period will lay a solid foundation for Ningbo to achieve over 1 trillion yuan in imports and exports this year, a head official at Ningbo Customs said.

The good start also indicates the city's strong economic resilience despite the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

Private enterprises were still the main engine driving the city's foreign trade growth from January to March.

In the first three months, imports and exports of private enterprises from Ningbo expanded 18 percent year-on-year to 214 billion yuan, accounting for 70.3 percent of the city's total.        

The city's top three trading partners during this period were the European Union, the United States, and ASEAN. Its trading volume with these economies was valued at 56.55 billion yuan, 53.55 billion yuan, and 32.41 billion yuan respectively, up 25.1 percent, 21.8 percent and 15 percent, and accounting for 46.8 percent of the city's total.

In addition, the city's trade with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative rose 21.1 percent to 85.81 billion yuan.

Over the period, Ningbo's trade volume with the other RCEP member countries totaled 75.72 billion, a yearly uptick of 4.7 percent.