Rugao, a county-level city in Nantong, reported robust foreign trade growth in the first three quarters of 2025, with total import and export value reaching 29.06 billion yuan ($4.09 billion), up 11 percent year-on-year. Exports totaled 21.57 billion yuan, rising 13 percent, while imports reached 7.49 billion yuan, up 5.6 percent.

General trade accounted for 21.06 billion yuan, or 72.5 percent of total trade, growing 8.3 percent compared to the previous year, while processing trade reached 7.35 billion yuan, up 22.8 percent.

Private enterprises led the growth with trade worth 16.84 billion yuan, up 10.4 percent, representing 57.9 percent of the total, while foreign-invested companies recorded 11.66 billion yuan, a 17.9 percent increase year-on-year.

Rugao's trade with countries along the Belt and Road totaled 14.74 billion yuan, up 12.8 percent and accounting for 50.7 percent of the city's trade. Trade with ASEAN countries surged 34.7 percent to 7.37 billion yuan, while trade with the EU rose 13.7 percent to 5.18 billion yuan.

Electromechanical products continued to drive export growth, reaching 10.81 billion yuan, up 32.6 percent, representing 50.2 percent of total exports. Ship exports soared 319.1 percent to 2.23 billion yuan, while electric vehicles, lithium batteries, and solar panels totaled 90.24 million yuan, up 11.2 percent.

On the import side, agricultural products, pulp, food, and electromechanical goods saw significant increases, accounting for 93.2 percent of total imports. Agricultural products rose 23.5 percent to 2.4 billion yuan, pulp grew 18.1 percent to 2.16 billion yuan, and food imports increased 28.7 percent to 1.59 billion yuan.

These figures highlight Rugao's strong performance in both traditional and emerging trade sectors, reflecting the city's growing role in international commerce.