Hunan’s Imports and Exports Increased by 37.4% in Q1

The photo taken on April 17 shows the busy scene at Changsha Xianing Port. (Photo by Fu Cong)

　　Hunan’s foreign trade sees a good start in the first quarter of 2018. According to the Changsha Customs, between January and March, Hunan province’s total import and export value reached 57.43 billion CNY, an increase of 37.4% over the same period of last year.

　　From January to March, imports and exports totaled 20.8 billion CNY, 17.1 billion CNY, and 19.53 billion CNY, an increase of 48.2%, 55.7%, and 16.3% respectively. The growth rate of the imports was higher than that of exports, but a balanced development is expected to be kept between imports and exports. In the first quarter, the volume of exports was 34.93 billion CNY, increased by 36.5%; and imports reached 22.5 billion CNY, a rise of 38.7%. With the deepening of cooperation with “Belt and Road” countries, more Hunan enterprises went global. Hunan’s imports from and exports to "Belt and Road" countries amounted to 19.06 billion CNY, an increase of 61.3%.

　　In terms of exports, mechanical and electrical products, and high-tech products were the main exported commodities. In the first three months, Hunan exported 15.18 billion CNY in mechanical and electrical products, an increase of 27.9%. The export volume in this regard accounted for 43.5% of the provincial total exports in the first quarter. The export of high-tech products grew by 6.4% to 4.47 billion CNY, which accounts for 12.8% of the provincial total exports.

　　Mechanical and electrical products contributed most to imports. The imports of high-tech products doubled. The imported mechanical and electrical products between January and March reached 9.54 billion CNY, an increase of 45.5%, accounting for 42.4% of the provincial total imports; the imported high-tech products valued 5.19 billion CNY, doubled over last year, accounting for 23.1% of the provincial total imports.