According to recent statistics by Beijing Customs for H1 2021, the imports and exports of the Beijing area (including central government departments in Beijing) reached RMB 1.42 trillion yuan, representing an increase of 26% (compared with the corresponding period in 2020, the same below) and setting a new record in the corresponding period in history. Imports increased by RMB 1.13 trillion yuan, representing an increase of 28.2%, and exports increased by RMB 293.05 billion yuan, representing an increase of 18.1%.

In the first half of 2021, Beijing's monthly imports/exports showed a fluctuated upward trend, distinctly better than that of 2020. After exceeding RMB 250 billion yuan in March, Beijing's imports/exports fell back after a rise in April and May, demonstrating a month-on-month decline. The imports/exports reached RMB 266.7 billion yuan in June, setting a new monthly high since December 2019.

Imports/exports with major trading partners have continued to grow. In H1 of 2021, Beijing's imports/exports with its top five trading partners, namely the EU (excluding the UK), USA, ASEAN, Australia, and Japan have continued to grow, accounting for 14.1%, 10.1%, 10%, 6.4%, and 4.9% of the total respectively. Among them, imports and exports with the USA reached RMB 143.65 billion yuan, representing an increase of 120.9%, the highest increase among the five trading partners. Beijing's imports and exports with Central and Eastern European countries reached RMB 25.51 billion yuan, representing an increase of 44.4%.

Among them, import of automobiles and agricultural products increased by over 50%. In H1 of 2021, among the top five commodities imported by Beijing, the import of automobiles and agricultural products reached RMB111.22 billion yuan (an increase of 71.2%) and RMB 96.85 billion yuan (an increase of 53.6%) respectively. The value of imported crude oil reached RMB 404.19 billion yuan, representing an increase of 20.3% with an import volume increase of 2.7% and an average import price increase of 17.2%. The value of imported natural gas reached RMB 79.24 billion yuan, representing an increase of 11.1%. The value of imported iron ore and refined minerals reached RMB 77.98 billion yuan, representing an increase of 36.6%.

Hi-tech products were the primary driver of export growth in Beijing. In H1 of 2021, the value of exported medical materials and drugs was RMB 37.91 billion yuan, representing an 12.4-fold increase; the value of exported mobile phones was RMB 43.56 billion yuan, representing an increase of 68.6%; and the value of exported integrated circuits was RMB 8.5 billion yuan, representing an increase of 27.8%. The export of bulk commodities from Beijing declined, with the value of exported refined oil reduced to RMB 78.39 billion yuan, representing a drop of 5.6%, down or 5.8% less in export volume and slightly up by 0.2% in average price. The amount of exported steel reduced to RMB 6.98 billion yuan, representing a drop of 0.8%.