BEIJING, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) -- China's customs authorities supervised an annual average of 5.2 billion metric tons of import and export goods worth 41.5 trillion yuan during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), making it the world's largest trade volume by both quantity and value, said Sun Meijun, head of the General Administration of Customs (GAC), at a press conference on Thursday.
Sun emphasized that since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan, Chinese customs has faithfully fulfilled its dual mission of safeguarding national borders and facilitating development. By continuously enhancing regulatory efficiency and service quality, the modernization of customs operations has achieved remarkable progress, providing robust support for high-quality development and high-standard openness.
Customs statistics reveal that during this period, authorities have intercepted 5.15 million prohibited items related to political subversion, firearms, and explosives, detected over 180,000 cases of 70+ communicable diseases, and rejected more than 200,000 batches of non-compliant goods. The administration collected 9.7 trillion yuan in taxes through comprehensive revenue management while maintaining stringent anti-smuggling efforts, with 23,000 smuggling cases investigated, effectively curbing illicit trade in key sectors, regions, and commodities.
China's open platform construction has reached new heights. Sun noted that 40 new or expanded ports have been added since 2021, bringing the national total to 311 ports, forming a comprehensive three-dimensional (land-water-air) and nationwide (east-central-west) port network.
Special customs supervision zones, particularly comprehensive bonded areas, have emerged as pivotal platforms for opening-up. Despite occupying less than 0.005% of national land area, they contribute 20% of China's total import-export value.
The island-wide customs clearance operation for Hainan Free Trade Port will officially commence by year-end. "We're intensifying preparations including finalizing customs supervision measures, completing 'second-tier port' inspections, launching smart supervision platforms, and releasing three regulatory documents including customs declaration standards to ensure smooth operation starting December 18," Sun stated.
Amid accelerating global transformations and growing external uncertainties, China has expanded cooperation space through mutual benefit. The GAC signed 519 international cooperation documents during this period. In 2024, trade with Belt and Road partner countries reached 22 trillion yuan, accounting for over half of China's total trade volume, with ASEAN, Latin America, Africa, and Central Asia maintaining annual growth exceeding 10%. China now ranks among the top three trading partners for 157 countries and regions globally.
Sun concluded that Chinese customs will proactively plan for high-quality development in the 15th Five-Year Plan period, aiming to contribute further to Chinese modernization through optimized supervision, enhanced security, greater facilitation, and stricter anti-smuggling measures.
(XinHuaNet)