Trade volume between Shenzhen and ASEAN countries totaled 184.13 billion yuan (US$26.53 billion) in the first half of 2019, an increase of 2.5 percent over the same period last year and accounting for 13.8 percent of Shenzhen’s total import and export value in the same period, the Shenzhen Economic Daily reported, quoting statistics from local customs.

Shenzhen’s exports to ASEAN countries witnessed 3.9 percent growth to reach 63.93 billion yuan, while imports grew 1.8 percent to stand at 120.2 billion yuan compared with the same period last year.

According to the customs’ statistical analysis office, as there’s tremendous potential in ASEAN countries’ digital economy, Shenzhen enterprises can continue to strengthen cooperation in the field of e-commerce to promote bilateral trade exchanges.

Private enterprises in Shenzhen are the major trading partners of ASEAN countries. The import-export value of local private firms amounted to 117.76 billion yuan in the first half of the year, accounting for 64 percent of the total.

The total exports to Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand accounted for more than 60 percent of the total value of the city’s imports and exports to ASEAN countries.

Mechanical and electrical products accounted for the majority of bilateral trade. Exports of mechanical and electrical products amounted to 44.82 billion yuan, up 2.6 percent and accounting for 70.1 percent of the city’s total export value to ASEAN countries over the same period last year. Labor-intensive products rose by 25 percent to reach 8.45 billion yuan.

Shenzhen’s exports of consumer goods to ASEAN countries grew by 15.9 percent in the January-June period, boosting the city’s total export value to ASEAN countries by 3.1 percentage points in the same period, data from Shenzhen Customs showed.

The Shenzhen market has a huge demand for fruits and other special products from ASEAN countries. In the first half of the year, Shenzhen’s imports of fresh and dried fruits and nuts from ASEAN countries saw a rapid growth of 28.8 percent.

(Zhang Yu)