In 2019, China’s major export goods were automatic data processing machines and components, followed by clothes and clothing accessories, mobile phones, textiles, and integrated circuits. Travel and transportation services were among most exported service categories in China that year.
With exports amounting to almost three trillion yuan, the European Union was China’s top export market in 2019. Among EU Member States, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and France were the leading importers of Chinese goods. The United States came in second after the EU with nearly 2.9 trillion yuan worth of exports from China. These two largest export regions accounted for over a third of China’s total exports.
China’s notorious trade surplus has decreased significantly since 2015 indicating that the country can no longer majorly rely on exports to boost its economy, but rather focus on a more sustainable balance of trade. A number of economists and analysts are now talking about China’s rebalancing of demand towards domestic consumption and eventually a shift to a near-zero balance of trade.
