Beyond expectations! Export growth accelerated significantly in the first two months, with integrated circuits and automobiles surging over 60%

Today, the General Administration of Customs announced China’s import and export data for the first two months of this year. The data shows that, measured in USD, China’s total imports and exports reached $1.09954 trillion, a year-on-year increase of 21.0%. Among them, exports totaled $656.58 billion, up 21.8%; imports reached $442.96 billion, up 19.8%, both exceeding expectations and significantly accelerating compared to the same period last year.

Focusing on key commodity export changes, Caixin.com found:

In the first two months of this year, China’s foreign trade exports continued to perform well, with electromechanical products and high-tech products becoming the main growth drivers. High-end manufacturing sectors such as integrated circuits, automobiles, and ships led the growth.

Specifically, in the first two months, China’s electromechanical product exports reached $410.909 billion, a year-on-year increase of 27.1%, further increasing their share of total exports. Among subcategories, all except mobile phones achieved double-digit growth.

Notably, compared to the same period in 2025, the export growth rates of integrated circuits, automobiles, and ships in the first two months of 2026 have “accelerated”: integrated circuits surged from 11.91% to 72.6%, automobiles from 2.49% to 67.1%, and ships from 2.20% to 52.8%, indicating a significant boost in growth momentum in high-end manufacturing.

Additionally, exports of high-tech products also performed strongly, reaching $167.230 billion, a year-on-year increase of 26.9%. Among traditional advantageous categories, plastic products, ceramic products, and furniture all maintained over 24% YoY growth, demonstrating strong resilience.

(Source: Caixin.com)