The first quarter foreign trade "report cards" of various regions have been successively released. According to reporters' statistics, as of April 22, 29 provinces in China have released their first quarter foreign trade data, with nearly half of the provinces (14) outperforming the "national line" (15%). Shaanxi, Hainan, and Chongqing are currently in the top three with year-on-year growth rates of 73.7%, 38.5%, and 34.3%, respectively. Zhu Keli, the founding director of the National Research Institute for New Economy, told reporters that in the first quarter of this year, various regions relied on their own industrial endowments to achieve differentiated growth, which not only consolidated the foundation of national foreign trade growth, but also demonstrated the strong resilience of China's foreign trade. According to data from major foreign trade provinces, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Shandong collectively contributed over 60% of the country's import and export growth in the first quarter. Specifically, Guangdong leads the country with a total import and export value of 2.54 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 19.4%. The quarterly scale has exceeded 2.5 trillion yuan for the first time, maintaining positive year-on-year growth for 11 consecutive quarters and 14 consecutive months. Among them, Shenzhen, as its core growth pole, accounts for over 50% of the province's foreign trade volume and contributes more than 80% of the increase. Jiangsu's imports and exports in the first quarter amounted to 1.59 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 17.2%. Among them, the import and export of foreign-funded enterprises reached 767.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 20.7%, driving the growth of the whole province by 9.7 percentage points. The coordinated efforts of foreign investment and foreign trade have achieved significant results. In addition, in the first quarter, Zhejiang's imports and exports amounted to 1.38 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.1%. Among them, the exports of electric vehicles and lithium batteries increased by 90.7% and 124.2% respectively, contributing more than 20% of the total export increment, and the role of new driving forces is prominent. Shanghai's import and export reached 1.23 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21.9%. From the trend, imports and exports have been growing year-on-year for 14 consecutive months, and exports have been growing year-on-year for 18 consecutive months. Shandong's import and export reached 859.81 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.7%, setting a new historical high for the same period. Among them, the import value in March reached 130.14 billion yuan, setting a historical monthly high. Professor Chen Jianwei from the National Institute of Opening up at the University of International Business and Economics told reporters that Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Shandong together contributed over 60% of the import and export increment. This is not only due to their profound industrial cluster accumulation and mature supply chain response speed, but also because they have taken the lead in optimizing and upgrading their trade structure in complex international situations. The steady performance of a major foreign trade province not only supports half of the country's foreign trade, but also drives the overall growth of foreign trade in the eastern region by 14.3%, echoing the high-speed growth of 20.2% in the central and western regions and the steady progress of 4% in the northeast region, building a new pattern of regional foreign trade development of "stable in the east, fast in the central and western regions, and improved quality in the northeast". In Chen Jianwei's view, in the future, the sustained efforts of major foreign trade provinces are expected to drive coordinated growth in the central and western regions, forming a new pattern of stable foreign trade with "points leading the area and radiating from the center". Overall, various regions have embarked on a path of differentiated growth. In the first quarter, the foreign trade data of each province showed a variety of highlights. Based on their own industrial advantages, various regions have focused on cultivating new driving forces and expanding new markets, and have embarked on a path of differentiated growth. Zhu Keli stated that the most distinctive feature behind China's high-speed growth in foreign trade in the first quarter is that new quality productivity is becoming the core driving force for upgrading exports. High end products such as green, low-carbon, and intelligent equipment continue to be popular, and foreign trade exports no longer rely solely on traditional labor-intensive goods. Innovation driven and quality upgrading have become the mainstream direction of foreign trade transformation. This change is not limited to traditional provinces with strong foreign trade. Inland regions are also keeping up with the wave of industrial upgrading, relying on their own cultivated emerging industrial systems to achieve rapid catch-up in the foreign trade track. The overall situation is characterized by multiple bursts of innovative momentum and the blooming of industrial advantages. ”Zhu Keli said. Data shows that emerging industries in various provinces have shown explosive power. In Shanghai, the export of integrated circuits and computer components with AI computing power as the core has increased by nearly 70%, and the export of intelligent equipment such as industrial robots and surgical robots has doubled; In Guangdong, the export momentum of high-tech products such as 3D printers, drones, and digital cameras is rapid, with year-on-year growth of 136.9%, 51.2%, and 60.2% respectively, accounting for 88.2%, 93.1%, and 74.9% of the national export proportion, respectively. The central and western provinces are also keeping pace. For example, in the first quarter, Anhui's high-tech product exports performed well, with particularly outstanding exports of automobiles (including chassis). A total of 437000 vehicles were exported, an increase of 118.8% year-on-year, and the export value reached 45.08 billion yuan, an increase of 120.1% year-on-year. Both the export volume and export value ranked first in the country, becoming a benchmark for foreign trade growth in central China. In addition, in the first quarter of this year, various regions continued to deepen their diversified market layout, and emerging markets opened up new space for foreign trade growth. For example, Jiangsu's import and export to countries jointly building the "the Belt and Road" reached 821.42 billion yuan, an increase of 24.6%, driving the import and export growth of the province by 12 percentage points; Anhui actively explores emerging markets, with a 41% increase in imports and exports to Latin America and a 56% increase in imports and exports to Africa in the first quarter. Chen Jianwei stated that focusing on emerging markets is a key measure for China's foreign trade strategy to expand in depth. Through market diversification, it effectively disperses the uncertainty caused by fluctuations in a single market and builds a solid strategic barrier. In the future, as the growth potential of emerging markets continues to be released, China's ability to resist risks in foreign trade will be further enhanced. (New Society)