China adopts targeted measures to bolster foreign trade growth(1)

Photo taken on May 1, 2022 shows a container vessel docking at the Qianwan Container Terminal in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

BEIJING, June 8 (Xinhua) -- In the face of increasing external and internal disruption factors, China has adopted a slew of targeted measures to bolster the growth of its foreign trade sector.

In an effort to help foreign trade firms navigate difficulties, the State Council, China's cabinet, issued a guideline last month to improve services and provide more financial and fiscal support for the enterprises.

To add further stability to the sector, 27 government departments, including China's top economic planner, the commerce ministry and the central bank, have rolled out relevant policies, which mainly focus on smoothing foreign trade logistics, strengthening financial support for foreign trade firms and stabilizing the industrial and supply chains of foreign trade.

These measures aim to secure market entities, stabilize their orders and markets, and protect their confidence, Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen told a press conference on Wednesday.

In the first four months, China's total exports and imports expanded 7.9 percent year on year to 12.58 trillion yuan (about 1.89 trillion U.S. dollars). In U.S. dollar terms, the growth rate hit 10.1 percent year on year.

The growth came on the basis of a high comparison base last year, and the country's foreign trade sustains sound conditions for further growth, Wang said.

He, however, cautioned that foreign trade firms continue to face challenges such as logistics problems and soaring raw material prices.

There are still uncertainties for the foreign trade sector as the global economic recovery remains fragile and demand growth continues to be slow, he said, adding that rising global inflation will reduce consumer spending on foreign goods.

Regarding financial aid, the People's Bank of China has continuously lowered the financing costs for the real economy, and provided targeted help for foreign trade firms, Zhou Yu, an official with the bank, said at the press conference.