The eastern coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong province saw its foreign trade surge 32.4 percent year-on-year to 849.84 billion yuan ($133.85 billion) in 2021, local customs authorities said on Jan 18.

Cargo is loaded and unloaded at the Qianwan container terminal in Qingdao, East China's Shandong province. [Photo by Yu Fangping/For China Daily]

The city's exports reached 492.13 billion yuan last year, up 27 percent from 2020, and imports hit 357.71 billion yuan, an increase of 40.7 percent year-on-year.

In December 2021, Qingdao's imports and exports reached 80.54 billion yuan, up 12.3 percent. Specifically, the city's exports stood at 52.5 billion yuan, a record high and up 15.7 percent, while imports totaled 28.04 billion yuan, up 6.6 percent.

The city's imports and exports in general trade and bonded logistics increased significantly last year.

In 2021, Qingdao's general trade reached 576.92 billion yuan, up 29.6 percent and accounting for 67.9 percent of the city's total foreign trade value.

In the same period, bonded logistics imports and exports reached 123.88 billion yuan, up 62 percent and accounting for 14.6 percent of the city's total. Imports and exports in processing trade reached 120.89 billion yuan, up 7.9 percent and accounting for 14.2 percent of the city's total.

Private enterprises continued to dominate the city's foreign trade. In 2021, imports and exports of Qingdao's private enterprises reached 570.94 billion yuan, up 34.9 percent and accounting for 67.2 percent of the city's total foreign trade value.

Meanwhile, imports and exports of foreign-invested enterprises reached 173.53 billion yuan, up 18 percent. Imports and exports of State-owned enterprises reached 103.97 billion yuan, up 49.7 percent.

Last year, Qingdao traded 135.37 billion yuan, 99.8 billion yuan and 98.87 billion yuan with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the United States and the European Union, its top three trade markets, up 43.1 percent, 28.4 percent and 19.1 percent respectively.

The city reported a 44.8 percent surge in trade with countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative. The figure hit 264 billion yuan, which accounted for 31.1 percent of the city’s total in 2021.

Trade with 14 other member countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership reached 319.65 billion yuan last year, up 35.4 percent from 2020.