Three key regions hit record highs in foreign trade, with over 9.32 million active companies; Guangdong leads.
In the first half of 2026, foreign trade in goods across the three major regions of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, the Yellow River Basin, and Northeast China all achieved rapid growth, with trade volumes reaching record highs for the same period in history, serving as a crucial pillar supporting the steady growth of national foreign trade.
Among them, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region recorded a total import and export value of 2.58 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 16.2%. In June, monthly imports and exports surpassed 140 billion yuan for the first time. Within the region, private enterprises saw an import and export growth rate of 21.9%, leading all types of business entities. The nine provinces and regions in the Yellow River Basin posted a total import and export value of 3.6 trillion yuan, up 14.7% year-on-year, with four provinces and regions, including Shaanxi and Inner Mongolia, achieving growth rates exceeding 20%. Trade with Asian and African markets showed particularly strong growth.
In the first half of the year, Northeast China recorded a total import and export value of 656.3 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.6%. Export performance was especially notable, with exports of mechanical and electrical products and agricultural products growing by 18% and 12.9%, respectively, as export momentum from advantageous industries continued to strengthen.
Data from Tianyancha Professional Edition shows that, as of now, China has over 9.327 million foreign trade-related enterprises in active or存续 status. Among them, approximately 836,000 new related enterprises were registered as of 2026. Looking at the trend in enterprise registrations, over the past five years, the number of newly registered foreign trade-related enterprises has shown a year-on-year upward trend, peaking in 2025.
In terms of regional distribution, Guangdong Province leads in the number of foreign trade-related enterprises, with over 836,000 such enterprises, accounting for 29.6% of the national total. It is followed by Zhejiang Province, Jiangsu Province, Shandong Province, and Shanghai.
