Daxiang News:

For more than a decade, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has become an important platform for China and partner countries to share development opportunities. What new achievements and highlights have emerged in economic and trade cooperation under the BRI during the first half of 2026? Thank you.

Yan Dong:

I would like to invite Ms. Li to answer this question.

Li Li:

Thank you for your interest in the business sector's work under the BRI. Since the beginning of this year, MOFCOM has earnestly implemented the guiding principles of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches on Belt and Road cooperation, continued to deepen economic and trade cooperation with partner countries, and delivered positive progress alongside numerous other highlights.

First, trade in goods with BRI partner countries has grown rapidly. From January to June, China's goods imports and exports with BRI partner countries amounted to 13 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14.8%. China's goods imports and exports with BRI partner countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and Oceania increased by 12.3%, 19.7%, 17.5%, 20.5% and 6.9%, respectively. In terms of goods categories, China's imports of integrated circuits, cellphones and aquatic products from BRI partner countries rose by 46.7%, 40.3% and 25.7%, respectively, enabling these countries to access the opportunities offered by China's huge market.

Second, two-way investment with BRI partner countries has continued to deepen. From January to June, China's non-financial direct investment in BRI partner countries reached 120.77 billion yuan. Its share of the total outbound investment in the same period rose by 0.5 percentage point to 26.7%. A host of photovoltaic power and other new energy projects, as well as AI cooperation projects including data centers, have successively launched. Meanwhile, between January and June, BRI partner countries set up more than 10,000 new enterprises in China, representing a year-on-year rise of 21.6%. China and BRI partner countries have leveraged their respective comparative advantages to expand new spaces for win-win cooperation in emerging fields such as green development and the digital economy.

Third, cooperation mechanisms with BRI partner countries have been further improved. China continues to expand its network of high-standard free trade zones. From January to June, China's imports and exports with its free trade partners among BRI countries reached 6.9 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.7%, accounting for 52.8% of its total trade with these countries. We have held a host of high-quality major exhibitions. The 9th China-Eurasia Expo is a case in point, which drew wide participation from BRI partner countries, with over 20 of them launching standalone national exhibition pavilions. The three national-level brand activities, namely "Shop in China," "Export to China" and "Invest in China," provided important platforms for BRI partner countries to share in the opportunities in the Chinese market.

Next, MOFCOM will work with relevant authorities to thoroughly study and implement the guiding principles of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches, deliver on key arrangements outlined in the 15th Five-Year Plan, and jointly advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation in greater depth and with solid outcomes. Thank you.