China’s Xinjiang reports vigorous foreign trade growth in 2025

Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region recorded a 19.9 percent year-on-year increase in total foreign trade value in 2025, the highest growth rate among China’s provincial-level regions, according to the regional government’s information office. Xinjiang’s total imports and exports reached 520.37 billion yuan ($74.6 billion), supported by an expanding opening-up framework centered on the China (Xinjiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone and a network of development zones, cross-border cooperation zones and bonded zones. Officials said improved infrastructure and logistics played a key role, with more than half of China-Europe and Central Asia freight trains exiting the country via Xinjiang in the past five years, round-the-clock customs clearance at major highway ports, and a sharp rise in international air cargo capacity, including a 152.2 percent year-on-year surge in cargo throughput at Urumqi Tianshan International Airport. Authorities also credited regulatory reforms, policies to encourage innovation in goods, services and digital trade, and efforts to attract investment and industrial relocation from eastern and central China. With the growth of new trade formats such as bonded aircraft maintenance and cross-border e-commerce, officials said Xinjiang is steadily optimizing its trade structure and advancing high-quality development driven by its geographic advantages.

Credit : CGTN