China has vowed to raise imports along with its consumption-boosting initiatives, translating its massive market into a stable engine for global trade and a thriving destination for foreign businesses, senior economists and business executives said. At a time of rising protectionist measures worldwide, Beijing’s commitment to opening its doors even wider to imports is expected to provide much-needed momentum for the fragile global economic recovery, they added. Their comments came after the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said earlier this month that China’s imports expanded 0.5% in 2025 from a year earlier to CNY18.48 trillion, maintaining its share of global imports at around 10%. “China’s imports hit a record high in scale last year, securing the country’s position as the world’s second-largest import market for the 17th year running,” said Wang Jun, Deputy Director of the Administration. Wang noted that declining global prices for key commodities last year, such as crude oil and iron ore, down about 10%, dragged down the overall import growth rate by 1.4 percentage points. “Given these conditions, achieving any import growth was no easy feat,” he said. “It’s worth noting that several countries have politicized trade and economic issues, restricting high-tech exports to China on various pretexts, otherwise, we’d be importing even more,” Wang added.
The Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) also launched the “Big Market for All: Export to China” initiative in November to motivate foreign businesses to increase their exports to China and seize the new opportunities offered by the vast Chinese market. “China has made a lot of efforts along the way to boost imports,” said Tu Xinquan, Director of the China Institute for World Trade Organization Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing. “To date, China’s overall tariff level has been cut to 7.3%, a level nearing the average of developed countries,” Tu said. “China also applies provisional tariff rates, lower than the most-favored-nation rates, to nearly 1,000 imported items annually.” In particular, China implemented zero-tariff treatment on 100% of tariff lines for all 53 least developed African countries that have diplomatic ties with China. The annual China International Import Expo (CIIE), held since 2018, is further evidence of Beijing’s import expansion drive. Last year’s edition saw intended deals amount to USD83.49 billion over a one-year period, hitting a record high. “In an era of economic uncertainty, a market of such scale and openness has become perhaps the world’s most sought-after resource,” said Liao Fan, Director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of World Economics and Politics.
According to the UN Conference for Trade and Development (UNCTAD), global trade growth is expected to weaken further in 2026 due to a slowing world economy, geopolitical fragmentation, persistent policy uncertainty, heightened vulnerabilities, and rising trade costs. The WTO has also sharply revised down its forecast for growth in global merchandise trade in 2026 to just 0.5%. In stark contrast, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, including over 400 million middle-income consumers, China is fueling nearly CNY50 trillion in annual consumption at home and is rapidly solidifying its role as a foundational pillar of global demand, Liao said. An increasing number of international brands are choosing China as the first market to debut their newest products, a trend that speaks volumes about the country’s unrivaled consumer appeal and strategic influence in shaping global demand.
In addition to adding a new concept store in Shanghai next year, Abercrombie & Fitch Co, a U.S. apparel and accessories retailer, will also step up its presence in top and second-tier cities, including Guangzhou, Guangdong province, Chengdu, Sichuan province and Changsha, Hunan province, by opening more stores across China. “The Chinese market remains our number one priority in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Steven Sare, A&F’s Managing Director for APAC. Norway’s high-end outdoor specialist Norrona, British cycling lifestyle brand Rapha, Italian outdoor footwear maker Crispi, and U.S. clothing company Smartwool also opened their first stores in China late last year. Robert Koopman, former Chief Economist of the WTO, said that over the next five to 10 years, “an important evolution in China’s role is going to shift toward being a big center of demand”.
With China’s sustained economic recovery, and in particular, expanding consumer demand, imports have maintained year-on-year growth for seven consecutive months since June, with the growth rate accelerating further to 4.4% in December, Customs data showed. This expansive demand offers a stabilizing counterweight to global economic volatility, providing predictable, long-term export opportunities for international businesses. For multinational corporations, accessing and succeeding in the Chinese market is increasingly seen as a strategic imperative. “The market is massive in scale and very diverse, from top-tier cities to lower-tier cities that are also growing in wealth with advanced demands,” said Hubert de Haan, Senior Vice President for China at German home appliances company BSH, the China Daily reports.
