Foreign trade in the Yangtze River Delta, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region remained resilient and continued to move toward higher quality in the first 10 months of this year, according to data from China's General Administration of Customs.
The Yangtze River Delta recorded 14 trillion yuan ($1.98 trillion) in imports and exports, up 6 percent year on year. The nine mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area posted 7.52 trillion yuan in foreign trade. At the same time, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region registered 3.91 trillion yuan, extending its growth streak to seven consecutive months.
In the first 10 months, private enterprises in the Yangtze River Delta handled 7.83 trillion yuan in imports and exports, up 9.7 percent year on year. They accounted for 55.9 percent of the region's total foreign trade.
At a hardware shop in Yiwu International Trade City in Yiwu, a city in east China's Zhejiang Province, buyers from Australia, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, and other countries were carefully inspecting samples, exchanging business cards, and negotiating prices with shop owner Zhang Cuiyan.
"We've definitely seen more foreign faces this year," Zhang said. "In the first three quarters alone, new clients increased by 20 percent compared with last year."
In the Greater Bay Area, electromechanical products have become the backbone of exports.
In the first 10 months, electromechanical products accounted for nearly 70 percent of total exports from the nine mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area. Meanwhile, electronic components and the "new trio" products — namely electric vehicles, solar cells, and lithium-ion batteries — saw export growth of 19.5 percent and 32.2 percent, respectively.
During the same period, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region maintained stable trade relations with over 240 countries and regions. By leveraging pilot free trade zones, comprehensive bonded zones, and other platforms, the region has steadily expanded its export capacity.
Yu Xinchuang, from the Institute of Industrial and Technological Economics under the National Development and Reform Commission, noted that the resilience of foreign trade in these regions is not just due to orders coming back to China; it reflects a structural upgrade in China's role within the global industrial chain.
Li Qing, deputy director of the Institute of Public Finance and Public Policy at the School of Public Administration and Policy, Renmin University of China, explained that the strong foreign trade performance of the three regions stems from a set of advantages.
According to Li, these regions have shifted their economic growth drivers from traditional cost advantages to innovation-led development.
"High-end manufacturing, including the 'new trio' products, high-tech industry clusters, aerospace and integrated circuits, has become a key driving force for China's rise in the global industrial chain. This early shift toward advanced industries and a more refined industrial structure has given these regions a distinct competitive edge in global markets," Li said.
As major hubs of China's global economic engagement, the three regions are deeply integrated into global industrial and supply chains. They have long cultivated traditional markets in Europe and the U.S. while remaining highly responsive to shifts in the global landscape.
From the Greater Bay Area's push to build a world-class bay area, to the Yangtze River Delta's drive for deeper regional integration, and to the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, all three regions have benefited from strong, top-level policy support. By removing administrative barriers and improving the flow and allocation of resources, they have fostered greater synergy for development.
Li noted that the Yangtze River Delta, the Greater Bay Area, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region are China's most economically vibrant and most open regions. Their steady foreign trade performance plays a direct role in stabilizing the country's overall foreign trade, providing strong support for GDP growth, employment, and foreign exchange earnings.
More importantly, the differentiated development paths of these regions have created a multi-pillar structure that reduces dependence on any single region or product.
"The Yangtze River Delta leads in sci-tech innovation and advanced manufacturing, the Greater Bay Area excels in cross-border services and financial support, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region focuses on coordinated development and institutional reform. This diversified growth model has strengthened the resilience and sustainability of China's economy," Li said.
