In the first four months of 2020, Shandong Province's foreign trade import and export volume reached 615.1 billion yuan.

According to customs statistics, in the first four months of this year, Shandong Province's foreign trade imports and exports totaled 615.1 billion yuan, down 2.6% year-on-year, with the decline narrowing by 1 percentage point compared to the first quarter. Exports totaled 337.42 billion yuan, turning from a 4.5% decline in the first quarter to a 0.9% increase; imports totaled 277.68 billion yuan, down 6.4%, with the decline widening by 3.8 percentage points compared to the first quarter.

　　In April, Shandong's foreign trade imports and exports totaled 168.63 billion yuan, up 0.4%, with the growth rate narrowing by 3.8 percentage points compared to March. Exports totaled 100.28 billion yuan, up 16.1%; imports totaled 68.34 billion yuan, down 16.2%.

　　 There are six characteristics of Shandong's foreign trade imports and exports in the first four months.

　　Bonded logistics imports and exports maintained growth, while processing trade declined significantly. In the first four months, Shandong Province's general trade imports and exports totaled 422.47 billion yuan, down 1.5%, accounting for 68.7% of the province's total imports and exports, an increase of 0.8 percentage points. During the same period, processing trade imports and exports totaled 107.35 billion yuan, down 14%; bonded logistics imports and exports totaled 75.1 billion yuan, up 7.6%.

　 　Imports and exports of private enterprises maintained growth, while those of foreign-invested enterprises declined significantly. In the first four months, Shandong Province's private enterprises' imports and exports totaled 413.4 billion yuan, up 3.3%, accounting for 67.2% of the province's total imports and exports, an increase of 3.8 percentage points; during the same period, foreign-invested enterprises' imports and exports totaled 142.79 billion yuan, down 15.7%; state-owned enterprises' imports and exports totaled 57.96 billion yuan, down 4.3%.

　 　Imports and exports to ASEAN increased significantly, while those to South Korea, the United States, and Brazil declined. In the first four months, Shandong Province's imports and exports to ASEAN, its largest trading partner, increased by 17.2%; to the EU (excluding the UK), Japan, Russia, and Australia, they increased by 0.5%, 0.4%, 3.8%, and 9.7%, respectively; to South Korea, the United States, and Brazil, they decreased by 10.4%, 7.3%, and 20.9%, respectively. During the same period, Shandong Province's imports and exports to countries along the Belt and Road totaled 196.18 billion yuan, up 10.3%, 12.9 percentage points higher than the province's overall growth rate, accounting for 31.9% of the province's total imports and exports, an increase of 3.7 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

　　 Exports of electromechanical products and labor-intensive products declined, while exports of agricultural products maintained growth. In the first four months, Shandong Province's exports of electromechanical products, labor-intensive products, and agricultural products decreased by 1.2%, 0.5%, and increased by 7%, respectively, accounting for 40.4%, 18.7%, and 11.5% of the province's total exports, respectively. Among electromechanical products, exports of computers, ships, integrated circuits, medical instruments and equipment, general machinery equipment, refrigerators, and containers increased rapidly, with growth rates of 1.8 times, 1.2 times, 96.7%, 33.4%, 23.7%, 22.6%, and 20.6%, respectively; among agricultural products, exports of vegetables and fruits increased by 21.1% and 40.6%, respectively; driven by exports of epidemic prevention materials such as masks and protective clothing, exports of textile products increased by 20.4%, reaching 13.29 billion yuan; the overseas epidemic also boosted the export value of medicinal materials and medicines in Shandong Province significantly, with exports reaching 5.57 billion yuan, an increase of 30.4%. In addition, steel exports decreased by 3.9%, and tire exports decreased by 17%.

　 　The sharp drop in crude oil import prices was the main reason for the decline in imports. In the first four months, the import value of crude oil, a major commodity imported by Shandong Province, decreased significantly by 12.8% due to a significant 22.2% drop in the average import price, despite a 12.1% increase in import volume, pulling down the province's import growth rate by 4.3 percentage points. In addition, the import value of electromechanical products decreased by 1%; the import value of metal ores decreased by 6.7%; and the import of agricultural products increased by 5.2%, with pork and dairy imports increasing by 2.7 times and 26.2%, respectively.

　 　Cross-border e-commerce imports and exports surged, with cross-border direct purchase exports and online tax-free imports making significant contributions. In the first four months, Shandong Province's imports and exports through the customs cross-border e-commerce management platform totaled 1.36 billion yuan, an increase of 1.5 times. Among them, cross-border direct purchase exports totaled 1.05 billion yuan, an increase of 1.3 times, accounting for 99% of the total cross-border e-commerce exports; online tax-free imports totaled 290 million yuan, an increase of 7.7 times, accounting for 96.8% of the total cross-border e-commerce imports. (Dazhong.net)