China's trade with Africa hits 1.19 trl yuan

China's trade with Africa grew steadily in the first seven months of the year, rising 5.5 percent year on year to 1.19 trillion yuan (about 166.6 billion U.S. dollars), according to data released by the General Administration of Customs.

China-Africa trade reached a record high of 282.1 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, up 1.5 percent year on year, showing strong resilience.

In 2023, China's imports of African nuts, vegetables, flowers and fruits increased by 130 percent, 32 percent, 14 percent, and 7 percent, respectively, from the previous year.

And China's new energy vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products exported to Africa increased by 291 percent, 109 percent and 57 percent year on year, respectively.

China has remained Africa's largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years, according to the customs.

The GAC released the China-Africa Trade Index for the first time in 2023, with the general index of data from 2000 serving as the benchmark.

Starting from 100 points in 2000, the index reached a record high of 990.55 points in 2022, indicating the rapid and positive development of China-Africa trade.

"China has long been committed to deepening China-Africa economic and trade cooperation, with ever closer industrial ties. China's trade with Africa in intermediate goods posted 6.4 percent year-on-year growth in the first seven months of this year, accounting for 68 percent of the total value of bilateral trade, which assisted Africa in its process of industrialization and economic diversification," said Lyu Daliang, director of the statistics and analysis department under the GAC.

The 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation will be held in Beijing from Sept 4 to 6, and it is expected that the two sides will further enhance their economic and trade cooperation