Chinas Foreign Trade up 23.7 Percent in First Eight Months

Chinas total imports and exports expanded 23.7 percent year on year to RMB 24.78 trillion in the first eight months of the year， data from the General Administration of Customs showed. The double-digit trade growth owed a lot to the countrys effective epidemic control and steady economic growth.

Private enterprises witnessed the fastest growth in trade， accounting for 48.1 percent of the countrys total.

During the same period， 427，000 private enterprises registered import and export performance， an increase of 9 percent year-on-year. These private enterprises， especially a group of specialized small and medium-sized ones， are very active and adaptive in foreign trade， contributing greatly to the increasing vitality of Chinas foreign trade development.

In the first eight months， Chinas imports and exports to major trading partners， including ASEAN， the EU， and the U.S.， all increased， and its trade with countries along the Belt and Road is up 24.6 percent.

Amid the pandemic， Chinas expanding opening-up is helping boost trade， contributing to the stability of the global industrial and supply chains， and bolstering the recovery of the world economy.

Foreign Holdings of Chinese Bonds Increase Continually

Data from the China Central Depository & Clearing Co.， Ltd. （CCDC） showed that as of the end of July， overseas investors held a total of RMB 3.38 trillion （about US $522.6 billion） of Chinese bonds， a new high in the previous five months， and a rise of RMB 75.4 billion from a month earlier.

In Chinas bond market， net inflows of foreign capital have become more stable， independent of market fluctuations， and the current market cycles have little impact on the Chinese bond market， which makes the RMB bonds attractive to global investors， analysts noted.

Chinas effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic and its robust economic recovery have boosted the global confidence in its economy， which is evidently embodied in the rapid growth of the RMB bond market， especially foreign investorsincreasing holdings of RMB bonds. In 2020 alone， foreign investors added RMB 1.0079 trillion of bonds.

Chinas bond market has developed into the worlds second largest， with rich varieties， and a complete set of trading tools within a safe and robust infrastructure. In recent years， the Peoples Bank of China and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange have steadily promoted the orderly opening up of the interbank bond market， giving foreign investors multiple channels to invest in Chinas bond market.

China Launched Pilot Direct Trading of Green Power

In a move to further boost renewable energy development， China launched pilot direct trading of green power between corporate consumers and renewable energy generators on September 7， according to the National Development and Reform Commission.

The launch of the pilot aims to tap the potential of market mechanisms in enhancing the cost efficiency of the low-carbon transition in the countrys power system.

The pilot will allow enterprises willing to shoulder more social responsibilities to directly trade with renewable energy generators. The earnings from the trading are expected to be invested into new energy development and will enhance the power systems capacity to absorb renewable energy.

The pilot will begin with wind and solar power and may be extended to hydropower and other renewable energies in the near future.

The commission said green power that is not subsidized by the government will be given priority in the trading. Subsidized green electricity or renewable power purchased by the government can also enter the market if no sufficient unsubsidized green power is available in pilot regions.

To achieve the carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals， China has proposed to accelerate the construction of a new type of power system dominated by new energy. By 2030， non-fossil energy will account for about 25 percent of primary energy consumption， and the total installed capacity of wind and solar power is expected to reach over 1.2 billion kilowatts.