HAIKOU – The total import and export of goods in South China’s Hainan province hit 115.16 billion yuan ($16.11 billion) in the first half of this year, up 26.4 percent year-on-year, Haikou Customs said Wednesday.

Specifically, Hainan’s export of goods from January to June amounted to 38.2 billion yuan, up 45.1 percent year-on-year, while its imports increased by 18.9 percent to reach 76.96 billion yuan.

The dynamic performance of private enterprises has played a crucial role in the province’s foreign trade. During the same period, Hainan witnessed the addition of 12,200 newly registered foreign trade companies, marking a 19.1-percent increase.

The European Union, ASEAN, and Australia were the top three trading partners of the island province from January to June. Its trade with countries along the Belt and Road rose 18.7 percent year-on-year to 38.03 billion yuan, accounting for 33 percent of the total.

Hainan’s foreign trade has sustained rapid growth in the first half of the year, with increasing import and export volumes, optimizing trade structure, and improving trade quality, a spokesperson of the Haikou Customs said.

China released a master plan in June 2020 to build Hainan into a globally influential and high-level free trade port (FTP) by the middle of the century. Since then, a slew of favorable policies have been rolled out to support the FTP development, including zero tariffs and easing market and foreign investment access. Source: European Chamber South China Chapter