Why has China become the largest source of imports to the UK?

(Economic Observation) Why did China become the largest source of imports in the UK?

　　China News Service, Beijing, May 26 (Reporter Li Xiaoyu) According to the latest data from the United Kingdom, China has surpassed Germany for the first time to become the UK's largest source of imports.

　　The latest data released by the British National Bureau of Statistics on the 25th local time shows that since the second quarter of 2020, the number of goods imported by the UK from China has exceeded the number of goods imported from any other country and continues to rise.

In the first quarter of 2021, goods imported from China accounted for 16.1% of the total UK imports, an increase of 65.6% compared to the first quarter of 2018.

This is the first time China has surpassed Germany to become the UK's largest import market since the National Bureau of Statistics began to record in 1997.

　　This situation is partly due to the fact that China is leading the way in epidemic prevention and control and economic recovery, and the domestic supply chain of the industrial chain is stable. It can continuously produce and accept overseas orders when factories in other countries are repeatedly "suspended" due to the epidemic.

This advantage in supply capacity allows China to seize the opportunity to export to the UK.

　　In addition, due to the repeated epidemics, the slow economic and trade recovery of EU countries, and the uncertainty brought about by Brexit, the trade between Britain and Europe has shrunk significantly, which objectively boosted the growth of British imports from China.

　　According to official British data, the total merchandise trade between the UK and EU countries in the first quarter of this year fell by 23.1% compared to the first quarter of 2018, while the trade volume with countries outside the EU fell by only 0.8%.

Since April 2019, Britain’s imports from Germany have declined, which roughly coincides with the rising uncertainty caused by Brexit and the timing of the epidemic.

　　It is worth noting that, in addition to upgrading to the UK's largest import market, China has also become the largest trading partner of some major economies.

　　Last year, China surpassed the United States to become the EU's largest trading partner for the first time.

According to data from Eurostat, EU imports from China in 2020 increased by 5.6% over the previous year; exports to China increased by 2.2%.

European and American trade has shrunk significantly compared to before the outbreak. EU imports from the United States and exports to the United States have decreased by 13.2% and 8.2%, respectively.

Among the EU's top ten trading partners in goods, China is the only one that has achieved two-way trade growth.

　　According to Indian statistics, the trade volume between China and India reached 77.7 billion U.S. dollars last year.

Although this amount is lower than in 2019, it is enough to make China India's largest trading partner.

　　Yan Jin, executive director of the Center for European Studies at Renmin University of China, said that under the impact of the epidemic, China has given full play to its advantages as a "world factory". The strong resilience and vitality of "Made in China" have further highlighted, and the status of the "world export champion" has been consolidated.

The scale of bilateral trade between China and major economies has steadily expanded, and the foundation for mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation has continued to strengthen, which will inject impetus into the world economic recovery in the post-epidemic era.

　　The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development also pointed out in the latest report that the progress of global economic and trade recovery is still unbalanced. China is expected to become one of the main drivers of world economic growth this year. The resilience of global trade will largely benefit from East Asian economies. .

　　However, some scholars believe that considering that the gap between competitors and China's export supply capacity will gradually return to normal as the epidemic is brought under control in the future, it remains to be seen whether China can continue to maintain its status as the largest trading partner of some major economies.

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