The General Administration of Customs (GACC, 海关总署) reported China’s January–September 2026 trade figures at a State Council Information Office (SCIO, 国务院新闻办公室) press conference on 14 October 2026. Imports rose 22.3 percent year on year to RMB 16.74 trillion, while cross-border e-commerce trade grew 4.4 percent.
Total trade reached RMB 39.94 trillion, up 18.8 percent
According to the press conference transcript, China’s goods trade totalled RMB 39.94 trillion in the first three quarters of 2026, up 18.8 percent year on year. Exports rose 16.4 percent to RMB 23.2 trillion and imports rose 22.3 percent to RMB 16.74 trillion.
Wang Jun (王军), GACC spokesperson and deputy administrator, said import growth outpaced export growth by 5.9 percentage points. The number of companies with import records reached 289,000, up 12,000 on the same period last year.
| Measure | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Q1–Q3 total trade | RMB 39.94 trillion | +18.8% |
| Q1–Q3 exports | RMB 23.2 trillion | +16.4% |
| Q1–Q3 imports | RMB 16.74 trillion | +22.3% |
| September total trade | RMB 5.16 trillion | +27.5% |
| September exports | RMB 3.03 trillion | +29.6% |
| September imports | RMB 2.13 trillion | +24.6% |
| Private companies, Q1–Q3 trade | RMB 22.73 trillion | +19.1% |
| Foreign-invested companies, Q1–Q3 trade | RMB 11.69 trillion | +19% |
Trade growth rose from 15.3 percent in Q1 to 22.3 percent in Q3
Wang said trade grew 15.3 percent in the first quarter, 18.3 percent in the second and 22.3 percent in the third. September trade of RMB 5.16 trillion was the first monthly total above RMB 5 trillion.
Unit: %
Goods trade, year on year · Source: SCIO and GACC, 14 October 2026
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| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Q1 2026 | 15.3% |
| Q2 2026 | 18.3% |
| Q3 2026 | 22.3% |
Cross-border e-commerce imports rose 3.3 percent to about RMB 434.05 billion
Lü Daliang (吕大良), GACC spokesperson and director of its statistics and analysis department, gave preliminary customs estimates for cross-border e-commerce (跨境电商). Trade was about RMB 2.18 trillion, up 4.4 percent; exports were about RMB 1.75 trillion, up 4.6 percent.
Cross-border e-commerce imports were about RMB 434.05 billion, up 3.3 percent. Lü named the main imported goods as pharmaceutical and health products and medical devices, beauty and personal-care products (美妆及洗护用品), and clothing, footwear, bags and jewellery.
Unit: %
Q1-Q3 2026, year on year; cross-border e-commerce figures are preliminary customs estimates · Source: SCIO and GACC, 14 October 2026
View as table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| All goods trade | 18.8% |
| All goods exports | 16.4% |
| All goods imports | 22.3% |
| Cross-border e-commerce trade | 4.4% |
| Cross-border e-commerce exports | 4.6% |
| Cross-border e-commerce imports | 3.3% |
Foreign-invested companies accounted for 34.5 percent of consumer-goods imports
Wang said imports by foreign-invested companies rose 21.1 percent. Their consumer-goods imports made up 34.5 percent of China’s total consumer-goods imports.
By product, foreign-invested companies accounted for 83.4 percent of China’s watch imports and 62.3 percent of its clothing imports.
French perfume imports rose 28.5 percent
Wang cited several imported foods and perfume. Imports of fresh durian from Malaysia rose 3.3-fold (增长3.3倍), salmon from the Faroe Islands rose 41.4 percent and Italian olive oil rose 28.6 percent.
Imports of French perfume rose 28.5 percent. China applies zero tariffs to 63 countries, and imports from them reached RMB 867.53 billion, up 15.3 percent.
Unit: %
Q1-Q3 2026, year on year; value or volume basis not stated · Source: SCIO and GACC, 14 October 2026
View as table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Faroese salmon | 41.4% |
| Italian olive oil | 28.6% |
| French perfume | 28.5% |
By partner, trade with ASEAN rose 22.7 percent to RMB 6.84 trillion. Trade with the European Union rose 8.4 percent to RMB 4.78 trillion, and trade with the United States rose 4.1 percent to RMB 3.18 trillion.
RMB values, with preliminary cross-border estimates
- Period: January–September 2026 (Q1–Q3) cumulative, plus September 2026.
- Unit: Chinese yuan (RMB). All changes are year on year.
- Cross-border e-commerce values are preliminary customs estimates (据海关初步测算) and are given as approximate figures (约).
- Growth rates for durian, salmon, olive oil and perfume refer to named countries of origin.
- Figures are taken from the SCIO press conference transcript published on 14 October 2026; speakers were Wang Jun and Lü Daliang of GACC.
