On January 13, the General Administration of Customs of China published statistics on foreign trade operations for 2024.
In general, the past year was successful for China’s foreign trade. This is evidenced by the total value of goods imported and exported in 2024, which amounted to 43.85 trillion yuan—5% more than the previous year. In dollar terms, trade turnover reached $6.162 trillion—an increase of 3.8%, driven by export growth of 5.9% and import growth of 1.1%.
A more detailed analysis of foreign trade by type of goods and regions highlights both China’s potential for trade expansion and hidden risks.
Despite protective measures by the US and the EU, China’s trade with these markets overall increased due to growing Chinese exports and declining imports. However, the figures for the US and EU differ significantly.
Trade between China and the US grew by 3.7% (approximately $688 billion). Exports increased by 4.9%, matching the overall growth rate of China’s trade, while imports slightly decreased by 0.1%.
China’s trade with the EU in 2024 amounted to approximately $786 billion, a modest growth of 0.4%, effectively remaining at the 2023 level. A 3% increase in Chinese exports drove this growth, while the EU’s imports significantly fell by 4.4%. China thus maintained its previous trade volumes with the EU without noticeable growth.
The data reflects the selective impact of trade restrictions: while China’s imports of critical high-tech goods from these regions decreased, its overall exports grew due to demand for other products in the US and EU. This situation is favorable for China and unfavorable for the US and EU, as evidenced by the continued increase in their trade deficits with China.
Trade with ASEAN countries grew at an outpacing rate of 7.8%, primarily due to Vietnam and Malaysia, which saw increases of 13.5% and 11.4%, respectively. Trade with other ASEAN countries was significantly smaller and, in some cases, accompanied by a decline in imports to China, such as those with Thailand and Indonesia. For these countries, trade turnover grew by 6.1%, driven by Chinese export growth of 13.6% and 17.6%, respectively, while imports to China fell by 5.2% and 4%, respectively.
Trade turnover between China and the Philippines decreased by 0.4% in 2024. China’s exports dropped by 0.2%, and imports fell by 0.8%. It is reflecting increased military-political tensions due to territorial disputes between the two countries.
The next significant foreign market for China is its BRICS partners. In 2024, a common negative trend was observed in China’s trade with these countries: imports from BRICS nations to China fell significantly, while Chinese exports increased, resulting in a higher trade surplus for China with its BRICS partners. Russia was a partial exception.
Trade between China and Russia grew slightly by 1.9%, reaching $244.82 billion. Imports from Russia remained unchanged at $129.32 billion, while Chinese exports to Russia increased by 4.1% to $115.5 billion. Russia maintained a positive trade balance with China, but the surplus fell from $18.17 billion to $13.82 billion.
Experts attribute the slowdown in Sino-Russian trade to unresolved issues in bilateral settlements and the exhaustion of previous growth drivers. Established bilateral projects have reached full capacity, and new ones are too insignificant to influence the overall trend. The growth of Chinese exports to Russia reflects the substitution of imports from unfriendly countries with Chinese goods. However, the localization of Chinese production in Russia, which could stimulate imports from China, is limited.
Efforts by the West to impact Sino-Russian trade through secondary sanctions have shown limited success, as evidenced by the growth in Chinese exports, although some effects are noticeable.
Imports to China fell significantly in trade with India (-3%), Brazil (-5.3%), and South Africa (-4.2%), while exports grew by 2.4%, 22%, and -7.8%, respectively. This resulted in a slight growth in trade turnover with India and Brazil and an overall decline with South Africa (-5.7%).
In terms of trade structure, the turnover of “high-tech products” remained high in both total value and by product type. In 2024, Chinese exports of high-tech products grew by 4.8%, while imports rose by 10.7%.
For most high-tech goods, trade turnover continued to grow. In some key categories, exports exceeded imports. For example, exports of Chinese integrated circuits grew by 17.4%, while imports rose by 10.4%. Exports of LCD panels grew by 9%, while imports increased by 5%. Exports of audio or video devices and components rose by 4.6%, and household appliances by 14.1%—products China does not import.
The export of 3D printers and industrial robots experienced notable growth, rising by 32.8% and 45.2%, respectively. These gadgets use technology that has been around for a while, like chips made with processes that are 28 nm or smaller and were perfected on older lithographic equipment.
Exports of vehicles grew by 15.5%, while imports fell sharply by 16.7%. This category likely includes electric vehicles, whose exports rose by 13.1%, according to Chinese experts. Exports of auto parts and components increased by 6.6%, while imports fell by 1.8%.
The drop in car and parts imports likely reflects reduced purchases of European-branded vehicles, which struggle to compete with Chinese products in terms of price-to-quality ratio in the Chinese market.
The situation with electric vehicles reflects China’s government efforts to promote green manufacturing, particularly new-energy vehicles.
Chinese experts conclude that “China’s green trade continues to lead the global energy transition,” citing figures such as 71.9% growth in wind turbine exports, photovoltaic product exports exceeding 200 billion yuan for the fourth consecutive year, and 3.91 billion units of lithium batteries exported in 2024.
However, troubling signs remain of China’s one-sided dependence on foreign procurement for some types of high-tech products crucial to its economy. A notable example is the significant gap between the growth of China’s imports (+57.9%) and exports (+9.9%) of data processing equipment.
Mobile phone exports fell by 3.1%, possibly due to US restrictions on supplying specific types of chips to China and difficulties with domestic production.
China’s imports of diodes and similar semiconductor devices remained nearly unchanged (+0.1%). This may reflect stricter US restrictions on selling advanced AI chips to China.
Overall, China’s 2024 foreign trade figures demonstrate a significant trade surplus, which has fueled growth in the trade of green, high-tech products, primarily through exports. China’s economy remains resilient, as evidenced by its substantial surplus with developed countries like the EU and its continued restructuring amidst global challenges.