Shenyang sees growth in Belt and Road trade

A Sino-Europe cargo train in the Sino-German High-end Equipment Manufacturing Industrial Park. [Photo/chinanews.com]

Shenyang in Northeast China's Liaoning province maintained strong foreign trade growth in the the first quarter of 2019, according to local customs authorities.

The total value of foreign trade in the city was 25.25 billion yuan ($3.75 billion) during the first three months of the year, representing a growth of 26.8 percent over the same period the previous year and accounting for 14.4 percent of the province's total foreign trade. 

The value of trade with countries along the Belt and Road reached 5.72 billion yuan, growing by 20.2 percent and accounting for 22.7 percent of Shenyang's total foreign trade. 

Since the "Belt and Road Initiative" was first proposed in 2013, Shenyang's trade with Belt and Road countries has grown at an average annual rate of 6.4 percent, going from 15.71 billion yuan in 2013 to 22.8 billion yuan in 2018. 

The majority of Shenyang's exports were mechanical and high-tech products. Statistics from Shenyang customs reveal that 5.42 billion yuan in mechanical products were exported, an increase of 8.2 percent, while 1.61 billion yuan in high-tech products were exported, an increase of 17.1 percent.

The Sino-Europe cargo trains, which focus mainly on export equipment and manufacturing products, reported a cargo volume of 51,400 tons – a 3.3-fold increase. 

A total of 8.15 billion yuan in auto parts were imported to Shenyang, an increase of 71.5 percent. This made auto parts Shenyang's primary import.