China’s imports grew faster than its exports for the sixth consecutive month in August 2026, driven by industrial upgrades and continued economic openness, according to government officials and business leaders. According to the General Administration of Customs, total imports rose 22% year-on-year to 14.61 trillion yuan (£1.63 trillion) in the first eight months of 2026, outpacing the 14.6% growth in exports. Overall trade in goods expanded by 17.6% to 34.78 trillion yuan. In August alone, imports surged 21.7% year-on-year to 1.92 trillion yuan (£214.4 billion), while exports rose 18.6% to 2.73 trillion yuan (£304.9 billion). Lyu Daliang, director of the GAC’s department of statistics and analysis, noted that China’s trade in goods remained strong in August, with both exports and imports showing double-digit growth for the fourth consecutive month. He highlighted that China is strengthening its modern industrial system through greater openness, integrating more foreign products and foreign-invested companies into its supply chains and innovation ecosystem. Foreign-invested enterprises accounted for 10.15 trillion yuan (£1.13 trillion) in imports and exports from January to August, up 18.1% year-on-year. Economists point to rising demand from industrial upgrades and efforts to widen market access as key drivers of the faster import growth. Lynn Song, chief economist for China at ING, noted that much of the import growth is linked to technology products, reflecting continued investment in this sector. Machinery and electronic products saw particularly strong demand, with imports of these items totaling 6.21 trillion yuan (£693.6 billion) from January to August, a 31.6% increase year-on-year. Policymakers are also pushing for more balanced trade. In July, the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee emphasized the need to broaden international economic and trade cooperation, develop trade in services, and promote balanced trade growth. Similar goals were outlined in a State Council meeting in June, which urged the expansion of imports of high-quality goods and services. Analysts say that China’s ongoing market opening is creating more opportunities for imports and helping overseas businesses tap into growing demand from consumption upgrades and industrial transformation. China has granted market access to 264 agricultural and food products this year, including coffee beans from Africa and pomelos from Vietnam. In aviation maintenance, a subsidiary of China Southern Airlines imported 680 million yuan (£75.95 million) worth of aviation materials from Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies, including Canada and Mexico, up 8.39% year-on-year. In the new energy sector, a lithium battery supplier in Ningbo, Zhejiang, imported nearly 90 million yuan (£10.05 million) worth of key raw materials from Indonesia, a 100% increase year-on-year. The growing demand for these materials is driving both exports and imports for the company.