Chinese export policy · Full chronicle and history

On November 5, Ding Xuexiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, stated at the opening ceremony of the 9th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai that the reason for the huge trade surplus is that China wants to import many products but cannot buy them, or is not allowed to buy them, and that normal trade in high-tech products is being interfered with. He also refuted claims that China is squeezing the economies of other countries.

According to the Associated Press, data released by China's National Bureau of Statistics on October 31 showed that the manufacturing PMI for October fell from 50.1 in September to 49.3, the new export orders index dropped from 50.0 to 48.7, and the production index fell from 51.7 to 49.8, indicating that factory activity has shifted from expansion to contraction.

According to a Nikkei Asia report on October 24, against the backdrop of intensifying competition among Chinese automakers and Europe's expanding armaments, Volkswagen's 125-year-old plant in Osnabrück, Germany, plans to halt car production in the summer of 2027 and shift to producing air-defense equipment and parts. In cooperation with Rafael, it aims to retain about 1,200 of its 1,800 jobs. Stickers opposing the conversion to military production have appeared near the plant.

According to a Wall Street Journal report on October 20, China's GDP in the third quarter grew 4.5% year-on-year, with strong exports surging 36% year-on-year in September, and the trade surplus expected to hit another record.

Germany is pushing the EU to propose safeguard measures by the end of the year to impose quotas on Chinese imports of chemical products, machinery, and potentially pharmaceuticals, in addition to planned quotas on Chinese hybrid vehicles.

According to a report by the South China Morning Post, after successfully pressing China to cap its exports of hybrid vehicles to Europe at 350,000 units per year, EU member states are emboldened and have now reached a consensus on adopting a tougher trade stance toward China, preparing to speed up a series of follow-up unilateral actions.

On October 15, sources revealed that the European Commission has begun assessing import data for the chemicals, machinery and other industries, and von der Leyen proposed at the summit that safeguard and quota measures be taken to protect the relevant industries.

On October 15, China's Ministry of Commerce commented on the China-EU understanding on export restrictions for hybrid vehicles, calling it "reciprocal and mutually beneficial" and saying it safeguarded the practical interests of Chinese enterprises.

According to a report by The Economist on October 15, China's consumer-grade 3D printer industry is rising rapidly, with export value in the first half of this year up 90% year-on-year. Chinese companies' global market share has climbed from 19% to 96% over the past decade, with Shenzhen Creality, Anycubic, ELEGOO, and Bambu Lab dominating the consumer-grade market.

On October 14, according to a Financial Times report, data from the General Administration of Customs showed that exports in September grew 36.3% year-on-year in dollar terms, far exceeding the expected 25.7%; the month's trade surplus reached a record $133.5 billion, with the cumulative surplus for the first nine months at $938.1 billion. Chips and data processing equipment accounted for 17.9% of exports, exports to the US rose 39.6%, and exports to Europe rose 25.3%.

Russian authorities announced a ban on the entry of trucks and special equipment models from several Chinese brands, including Dongfeng, Foton, XCMG and JAC, into the Russian market, citing reasons such as non-compliance with safety requirements.

On October 9, EU Trade Commissioner Sefcovič announced after meeting with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Beijing that the two sides had reached an understanding on limiting exports of Chinese hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles to Europe, which could cut export volumes by more than half.

Facing massive breach-of-contract damages and a crisis of international credibility, the CCP on October 8 approved continuing to fulfill exports under refined oil contracts totaling 3.7 million tons and worth US$4.5 billion that had already been signed in October.

According to a report by The New York Times on October 6, China's value-added tax refunds for exporters reached $318.2 billion last year, equivalent to 1.5% of GDP; the renminbi depreciated by more than 14% from the start of 2022 after inflation adjustment, and the export model has intensified friction with trading partners.

On October 3, China's Ministry of Commerce announced the launch of an anti-dumping investigation into p-nitrotoluene imported from the European Union, with the investigation period running until October 2027 and extendable by six months. The ministry said prices of the relevant EU products fell by nearly 60% cumulatively from 2022 to 2025, and noted that the EU has launched 28 trade remedy investigations against China since 2025.

The Peterson Institute for International Economics released a report pointing out that from January to July this year, the gap between China's customs-reported exports to the United States and U.S.-recorded imports from China reached $99.8 billion, and the deviation in China-U.S. import and export data reached 10.5 standard deviations, which cannot be explained by statistical definitions.

Starting from National Day on October 1, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) issued stricter restrictions: apart from ensuring flights to Hong Kong and Macau and some marine fuel, all exports of refined oil products such as diesel and gasoline have been halted, and all signed contracts have been cancelled.

EU Trade Commissioner Šefčovič warned during the G20 trade ministers' meeting that Chinese exports are threatening key European industries such as automobiles and steel, and that overcapacity combined with global market turmoil could endanger entire sectors within weeks or months.

China and the EU recently reached an arrangement on import quotas for Chinese hybrid vehicles, against the backdrop of EU concerns over the impact of low-priced Chinese goods on domestic industries.

Ministry of Commerce data show that from January to July 2026, actual foreign investment nationwide was 438.33 billion yuan, a year-on-year decline of 6.2%.

According to the blogger in the video, the EU has been in long-term talks with China over Chinese dumping in the EU of new energy vehicles, steel, medical equipment and other products, and has set October of this year as the final deadline. If the negotiations break down, the EU market will be closed and the relevant Chinese products will be unable to enter.

According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, China's automobile exports reached 5.096 million units in the first half of 2026, a year-on-year increase of 65.3%.

Chinese car sales in Thailand have overtaken Japanese cars, breaking the long-standing dominance of Japanese automakers in the Southeast Asian market; in Australia they have also surpassed Japan to become the largest source country of car imports.

On August 24, 2026, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the State Administration for Market Regulation jointly issued guidelines requiring Chinese automakers to avoid frequent and large price adjustments overseas and not to disrupt market order.

In 2026, Shenzhen's cross-border e-commerce sector has been hit by an unprecedented clearing-out, with veteran sellers in Bantian, Fuyong, Huanan City and elsewhere who had endured for five or six years successively clearing out their stores, cutting operations and scaling back, while some simply shut their doors.

Bo Guagua posted a long message on X, suggesting that Canada reduce its trade dependence on the United States and instead strengthen trade with China, including importing Chinese electric vehicles and Great Wall wine.

Chinese state media People’s Daily published a commentary defending China’s strong exports and rebutting warnings of a “new round of China shock.”

On the evening of August 16, the Chinese Communist Party's first container ship set sail from Ningbo Port, attempting to head to Europe and the Middle East via the Arctic route in an apparent bid to bypass volatile Middle Eastern shipping lanes.

On August 11, 2026, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed that China's overseas auto shipments reached 918,000 units in July, up 88% year-on-year and accounting for more than 40% of production; however, domestic passenger vehicle retail sales plunged 21% year-on-year, with fuel-powered vehicles down 41%.

On August 9, 2026, Reuters reported that in the first half of 2026 German exports to China fell by more than 12% year on year to below 37 billion euros, imports from China grew 8.9%, and the trade deficit with China widened to about 55 billion euros.

The General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China released August foreign trade data, showing that dollar-denominated exports rose 25% year-on-year, and the cumulative increase from January to August reached 19.3%.

On August 1, 2026, a video in which the EU reported serious safety risks such as excessive formaldehyde levels and banned chemicals in a number of Chinese-made export products sparked heated debate among domestic netizens over double standards for products at home and abroad; the video's comment section was subsequently cleared entirely.

China's announced June exports grew 27% in dollar terms, with integrated circuits and servers alone contributing 11 percentage points.

After Putin's visit to China and his promise to increase oil supplies to China, CCP China eased refined oil export restrictions in June, resuming some external contract fulfillment.

China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, when Washington made a bipartisan bet that trade would make China a closer friend and set it on the path to freedom.