Qingdao’s imports and exports in the first half of 2026 amounted to RMB 467.21 bln, increasing by 5.7% year on year. It is particularly worth mentioning that the city’s gross value of imports and exports in June surged by 13.8% to RMB 84.12 bln, and surpassed the RMB 80 bln mark for the third consecutive month. To be specific, exports in June soared by 30.3% to RMB 55.69 bln, outpacing the national growth rate and the provincial rate by 6.1 and 15.4 percentage points, respectively.

Robust growth in Qingdao’s exports was particularly buoyed by “sports economy” and “cooling consumption”. Qingdao’s exports of sports goods and equipment in the first half of 2026 amounted to RMB 2.72 bln, surging by 14.3% from the year before and above the peak level when the Paris Olympic Games was about to take place. Furthermore, RMB 8.69 bln worth of Qingdao-made household appliances for cooling purposes, including air conditioners, fridges and electric fans, were exported, growing by 11.3% over the same period last year. Exports of the above-mentioned products in the second quarter surged by 23.8% year on year to a new record high of RMB 4.62 bln.

Furthermore, Qingdao-made “new trio” (electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products) continued to enjoy brick sales in the international market, and reaped exports of RMB 3.43 bln, rocketing by 101.6%. Among them, exports of electric vehicles and photovoltaic products amounted to RMB 2.83 bln and RMB 370 mln, surging by 113.7% and 459.5%, respectively. (Liu Lanxing)