China's service trade expands steadily

China's service trade reported robust growth in 2018 and maintained upbeat momentum in the first quarter this year amid external uncertainties.

People watch an auto-pilot car during the 2019 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing, capital of China, May 28, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]

The 2019 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), which opened Tuesday in Beijing, will inject new energy into the world economy and global service trade development.

The following are the main facts and figures released by the Ministry of Commerce on the solid performance of China's service trade.

Steady expansion

– China's service trade rose 2.6% to 1.29 trillion yuan (about US$191 billion) in the first quarter of 2019.

– In Q1, the export of services totaled 463.49 billion yuan, up 10.3%, while import edged down 1.3% to 828.49 billion yuan, causing a deficit of 365 billion yuan, down 14.3% year on year.

– In 2018, China's service trade saw robust growth of 11.5% to 5.24 trillion yuan, a historic high and ranking the second in the world for five consecutive years.

– Last year, service export went up 14.6%, the fastest growth since 2011, while import grew 10%.

Improved structure

– In Q1 of 2019, the share of service trade in the country's total foreign trade stood at 15.6%, 1 percentage point higher than the share for the whole of 2018, indicating a trend of steady expansion.

– Of the total service trade, trade in emerging services saw an increase of 12.6% on a year-on-year basis, 10 percentage points higher than the overall service trade growth.

– Export of knowledge-intensive service sectors has become a major force driving the growth of overall service trade. In Q1, the export of China's intellectual property royalties surged 52.4% than a year ago.

– In 2018, China's service export in transport, insurance, intellectual property royalties and other business service sectors have all posted double-digit growth, with the export of computer and information soaring 69.5% year on year.

– While recording robust expansion, the year of 2018 saw a service trade deficit of 1.7 trillion yuan, or 32.6% of total service trade, narrowing 2 percentage points from a year ago.

More opportunities

– As China shifts away from old-growth drivers, the service industry is now a key growth engine that firmly steers the economy forward.

– The tertiary sector reported the strongest growth in added value by expanding 7% to reach 12.232 trillion yuan, which accounted for 57.3% of the gross domestic product for Q1, picking up by 0.6 percentage points compared with Q1 2018.

– In Q1, China's average per capita disposable income stood at 8,493 yuan, up 6.8% year on year in real terms, indicating a higher purchasing power.

– As China has taken a slew of measures to boost domestic demand, open up the service sector and push forward upgrading of consumption, its service trade with trading partners is projected to grow steadily.