In the first five months of this year, the total import and export value of Qingdao reached 315.64 billion yuan ($49.43 billion), an increase of 33.7 percent over the same period last year and up 36.2 percent over the same period in 2019, according to statistics from Qingdao customs.

The city's foreign trade volume over the period accounted for 29.4 percent of Shandong province's total.

Automation has played a key role in increasing efficiency and safety at the Qingdao Port in Shandong province. [Photo/China Daily]

From January to May, the city's exports hit 169.59 billion yuan, up 22.8 percent year-on-year and 31.8 percent over the same period in 2019, while its imports stood at 146.05 billion yuan, up 49 percent year-on-year and 41.7 percent over the same period in 2019.

Qingdao's general trade import and export during this period reached 212.38 billion yuan, an increase of 31.2 percent, accounting for 67.3 percent of the city's total foreign trade value.

The import and export of processing trade reached 49.54 billion yuan, up 17.3 percent, accounting for 15.7 percent of the city's total. The figure for bonded logistics reached 42.39 billion yuan, up 49 percent, accounting for 13.4 percent of the city's total.

In the first five months, the import and export of private enterprises in Qingdao reached 206.42 billion yuan, up 37.6 percent year-on-year, accounting for 65.4 percent of the city's total.

The foreign trade volume of foreign-invested enterprises in the city reached 69.36 billion yuan, up 22 percent year-on-year, while the figure for State-owned enterprises hit 38.88 billion yuan, up 35.8 percent.

Qingdao's imports and exports to ASEAN, EU and the United States, the top three trade markets, increased by 58.1 percent, 21.2 percent and 41.9 percent respectively, to 52.62 billion yuan, 37.85 billion yuan and 36.17 billion yuan, accounting for 16.7 percent, 12 percent and 11.5 percent of the city's total foreign trade.

Over the same period, Qingdao's imports and exports to South Korea, Japan and Brazil increased by 30.7 percent, 10 percent and 31.6 percent respectively.

The city's trade with countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative hit 98.95 billion yuan, up 43.9 percent year-on-year. Its trade with other RCEP member states amounted to 123.6 billion yuan, up 42.4 percent, while its trade with other SCO member states hit 17.28 billion yuan, an increase of 5.2 percent.