Shanghai’s total import and export value in the first two months of this year increased by more than 20 percent year on year.

　　Shanghai, March 17 (Xinhua) (Reporter Jiang Yu) According to statistics released by Shanghai Customs on the 17th, Shanghai's foreign trade had a strong start this year, with a total import and export value of 796.57 billion yuan (RMB, the same below) in the first two months, an increase of 23.1% year-on-year, 4.8 percentage points higher than the national overall growth rate. Among them, exports were 357.65 billion yuan, an increase of 19.3% year-on-year; imports were 438.92 billion yuan, an increase of 26.4% year-on-year.

　　Since February last year, Shanghai's imports and exports have achieved positive year-on-year growth for 13 consecutive months, with the recovery trend continuing to consolidate. Particularly in February this year, the total import and export value of Shanghai was 397.52 billion yuan, a significant year-on-year increase of 28.7%, marking the highest monthly growth rate since 2011.

　　While consolidating traditional markets, Shanghai actively expands into emerging markets, making its trade "circle of friends" more balanced and diverse. In the first two months, the import and export value with its largest trading partner, the European Union, increased by 18.5% year-on-year. During the same period, imports and exports with emerging markets such as ASEAN, the Middle East, and Africa increased by 21.8%, 15.6%, and 30.4% year-on-year, respectively. The decline in exports to the United States narrowed significantly.

　　In the first two months, Shanghai's export performance of new momentum products was outstanding. The export value of electric vehicles and lithium batteries increased by 112.6% and 94.9% year-on-year, respectively, raising the overall export growth rate of the city by 5.9 percentage points. Driven by global port updates, rising computing power demand, and manufacturing transformation, the exports of quayside container cranes, high-voltage electrical equipment, and industrial robots increased by 120.6%, 77.4%, and 153.5% year-on-year, respectively. Meanwhile, the export value of labor-intensive products reached a new historical high for the same period.

　　In terms of imports, the import of high-tech products and key components grew rapidly. In the first two months, the import value of mechanical and electrical products in Shanghai increased by 14% year-on-year, with imports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, storage components, and central processing components increasing by 43.9%, 100.8%, and 111.3% year-on-year, respectively; imports of aircraft parts increased by 124.6% year-on-year. (End)