Trade powerhouse

Guangdong is China's top province in terms of foreign trade. Customs data show Guangdong's foreign trade reached 9.11 trillion yuan ($1.25 trillion) in 2024, an increase of 9.8 percent over 2023.It enabled the province to rank first in the country for 39 consecutive years and contributed 38.7 percent to national growth, accounting for 20.8 percent of the total, an increase of 0.9 percentage points.

Specifically, the province's exports amounted to 5.89 trillion yuan in 2024, up 8.4 percent, while imports totaled 3.22 trillion yuan, up 12.5 percent.

During the first quarter of this year, Guangdong's imports and exports reached 2.14 trillion yuan, an increase of 4.2 percent from the same period last year, which is 2.9 percentage points higher than the national growth rate. Of the foreign trade value, exports were 1.34 trillion yuan, up 1.4 percent, and imports were 798.15 billion yuan, increasing 9.3 percent, according to the latest customs statistics.

As China's leading province in terms of economy, opening-up and foreign trade, Guangdong has seen its import and export value jump to 8 trillion yuan and 9 trillion yuan in just four years since 2021, said Zhu Xiaojun, deputy head of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Commerce, during an investment promotion event at the Canton Fair Complex on Tuesday.

"This demonstrates the solid foundation, resilience and enormous potential of the province's economic development." the official said.

Guangdong boasts a strong manufacturing base, comprehensive industrial support and a large market capacity with robust demand. Its connectivity with Hong Kong and Macao and its alignment with international standards provide new trade channels and vast market opportunities for export-oriented businesses.

This is significant for expanding into diversified markets such as Southeast Asia, Europe and Portuguese-speaking countries, while accelerating the integration of domestic and foreign trade under the new circumstances.

Front-runner

Guangdong encompasses all 31 major manufacturing categories, integrating development across traditional, emerging and future industries. This has led to the formation of nine industrial clusters each capable of generating over 1 trillion yuan in annual operating revenue. These include next-generation electronic information, the light industry and textiles, advanced materials, green petrochemicals, modern agriculture and food, smart home appliances, software and information services, automobiles and new energy.

In 2024, industrial enterprises above designated size in the province achieved 19.4 trillion yuan in combined operating revenue. Fifteen industries, including electronic information manufacturing, automobiles and electrical machinery, ranked first nationally by annual output. Guangdong has also led the nation for years in the production of automobiles, smartphones, industrial robots and drones.

The core industry scale of AI in Guangdong surpassed 220 billion yuan in 2024, maintaining its lead nationally. The province is home to more than 1,500 core AI enterprises, with the highest number of national "little giant" specialized and innovative enterprises in the field.

The production of industrial robots increased from 44,700 units in 2019 to 246,800 units in 2024, accounting for 44 percent of the country's total. Since 2020, Guangdong has remained the top producer of industrial robots for five consecutive years, establishing a preliminary comprehensive "brain-sensors-limbs" humanoid robot industry chain.

Han Yonghui, deputy head of the Guangdong Institute for International Strategies at the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, said the development resilience and vitality of foreign trade are strongly linked to the province's enhanced position as a trade hub and the flourishing growth of its trade entities.

In 2024, Guangdong was home to 146,000 companies involved in foreign trade, an increase of 11.6 percent from 2023. Of them, 123,000 were private businesses who achieved an import and export volume of 5.8 trillion yuan, a 15.2 percent increase — 5.4 percentage points higher than Guangdong's overall growth rate. Their contribution to Guangdong's total import and export value rose by 3 percentage points to 63.6 percent.

The increased vitality of these business entities has become a driving force behind Guangdong's flourishing foreign trade, experts said.

Han said Guangdong's achievements in foreign trade can also be attributed to the Belt and Road Initiative and the promotion of high-level opening-up policies. These factors have led to a rapid increase in trade volume with BRI countries, diversification and technological sophistication of the province's exports, and a continuous expansion in the export of mechanical and electrical products and high-tech products.

Additionally, the rapid rise of emerging industries and customs clearance facilitation measures are conducive to reduced logistic costs and export efficiency, enhancing the competitiveness and market responsiveness of enterprises, he added.