On August 4, it was reported that China’s service trade maintained steady growth in the first half of 2025, with the total import and export volume reaching 3.88726 trillion yuan, an increase of 8.0% year-on-year. Exports amounted to 1.6883 trillion yuan, up by 15.0%, while imports reached 2.19896 trillion yuan, rising by 3.2%. The service trade deficit stood at 510.66 billion yuan, a reduction of 152.21 billion yuan compared to the same period last year.
Knowledge-intensive service trade continued to grow. In the first half of the year, the import and export volume of knowledge-intensive services reached 1.50254 trillion yuan, an increase of 6.0%. Among them, other commercial services, telecommunications, computer, and information services recorded significant volumes, with amounts of 639.1 billion yuan and 529.38 billion yuan, respectively, growing by 3.1% and 12.7%. Exports of knowledge-intensive services totaled 865.04 billion yuan, up by 7.8%, while imports reached 637.5 billion yuan, increasing by 3.6%. The surplus was 227.54 billion yuan, expanding by 40.92 billion yuan year-on-year.
Travel services saw the fastest export growth. In the first half of the year, travel services maintained rapid growth, with import and export volumes reaching 1.08029 trillion yuan, up by 12.3%, making it the largest sector in service trade. Exports surged by 68.7%, while imports grew by 5.5%.