The country import read
What does China import?
In 2024, China recorded $2.3T in reported imports. Imports changed -0.3% year on year and -1.3% annualized over three years. Electrical machinery was the largest displayed import sector.
Country import demand
China
import demand
A reported view of China's import scale, sector demand, supplier breadth, economy, and trade history.
Latest imports$2.3T2024 reported
Import growth-0.3%Year on year
Population1.4BReported population
GDP per capita$13.3KCurrent-dollar GDP
Trade openness34.6%Exports + imports / GDP
Import history
A long view of demand
Latest twelve years from the reported country series.
Reported imports by year
Demand drivers
The economy behind import demand
Macro and structural indicators add context to reported imports.
Import portfolio
The sectors shaping demand
All returned HS2 sectors ranked by latest import value.
Import demand by HS2All returned · 2024
| Rank | Sector | Imports | Share | Import partners | Active HS6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electrical machineryHS2 85 | $522.7B | 22.5% | 192 | 262 |
| 2 | MachineryHS2 84 | $204.8B | 8.8% | 178 | 515 |
| 3 | VehiclesHS2 87 | $55.4B | 2.4% | 147 | 87 |
| 4 | PlasticsHS2 39 | $57.5B | 2.5% | 171 | 129 |
| 5 | Furniture and lightingHS2 94 | $2.0B | 0.1% | 133 | 42 |
| 6 | Articles of iron or steelHS2 73 | $8.5B | 0.4% | 167 | 124 |
| 7 | Organic chemicalsHS2 29 | $44.2B | 1.9% | 117 | 384 |
| 8 | Toys and sports equipmentHS2 95 | $2.1B | 0.1% | 120 | 31 |
| 9 | Knitted clothingHS2 61 | $3.5B | 0.2% | 154 | 106 |
| 10 | Optical and medical instrumentsHS2 90 | $67.8B | 2.9% | 162 | 142 |
Import values are reported observations. Full rows remain in the downloads.
Supply diversification
Where import exposure is spread
Partner breadth, concentration, access, and distance add supplier context.
Complete country valuesOpen the full import evidenceFull profile, history, and HS2 sector fields remain available here and in the downloads.
Profile fields
| Year | 2,024 |
|---|---|
| Country Iso3 | CHN |
| Exports Usd | $3.5T |
| Imports Usd | $2.3T |
| Trade Balance Usd | $1.2T |
| Yoy Exports Growth Pct | 6% |
| Yoy Imports Growth Pct | -0.3% |
| Exports Cagr 3y Pct | 2.8% |
| Imports Cagr 3y Pct | -1.3% |
| Export Partner Hhi | 370.3 |
| Export Product Hhi | 74.2 |
| Momentum Score | 5 |
| Risk Score | 2.2 |
| Gdp Million Usd | 18,743,803.2 million USD |
| Gdp Per Capita Usd | $13.3K |
| Population | 1,408,975,000 |
| Labor Force | 787,768.5 |
| Investment Rate Pct | 44.5% |
| Savings Rate Pct | 45.8% |
| Secondary Education Pct | 84.8% |
| Tertiary Education Pct | 7.9% |
| Total Factor Productivity | 753 |
| Trade Openness Pct | 34.6% |
| Exports Gdp Pct | 20.8% |
| Num Active Partners | 270 |
| Num Fta Partners | 27 |
| Num Wto Partners | 169 |
| Num Eu Partners | 28 |
| Num Shared Border Partners | 18% |
| Num Shared Language Partners | 6% |
| Avg Partner Distance Km | 9,547 km |
| Avg Partner Gdp Million Usd | 533,678,518.3 million USD |
| Avg Partner Gdp Per Capita Usd | $15.8 |
| Avg Buyer Biz Entry Days | Not reported |
| Avg Buyer Biz Entry Cost Pct | Not reported |
| Pct Partners With Fta | 10 |
| Pct Partners Shared Language | 2.2% |
| Pct Partners Shared Border | 6.7% |
| Avg Applied Tariff Pct | 0.1% |
| Avg Mfn Tariff Pct | 0.1% |
| Avg Preferential Tariff Pct | 0% |
| Tariff Advantage Pp | 0.1 |
| Avg Distance All Partners Km | 9,200 km |
| Num Border Partners | 405 |
| Num Colonial Partners | 20 |
| Avg Substitution Elasticity | -10.9 |
| Pct Products High Elasticity | 76 |
| Pct Products Low Elasticity | 2.7 |
| Real Market Potential | 469,092.8 |
| Foreign Market Potential | 10,340.4 |
Supplier context
| Country Iso3 | CHN |
|---|---|
| All History Lane Count | 106,412 |
| Current Lane Count | 103,145 |
| Critical Lane Count | 4,324 |
| High Attention Lane Count | 50,639 |
| High Volatility Lane Count | 56,763 |
| Unrecovered Drawdown Lane Count | 31,574 |
| Declining Demand Lane Count | 536 |
| Concentrated Market Lane Count | 56,756 |
| Access Friction Lane Count | 42,921 |
| Buyer Macro Weakness Lane Count | 7,384 |
| Monitored Exports Current Usd | $3.3T |
| Attention Exports Usd | $2.5T |
| Critical Exports Usd | $230.8B |
| High Volatility Exports Usd | $1.7T |
| Unrecovered Drawdown Exports Usd | $405.0B |
| Non Fta Exports Usd | $2.3T |
| Monitored Attention Share Pct | 75.6% |
| Monitored Critical Share Pct | 7% |
| Fta Covered Exports Share Pct | 29.1% |
| Export Weighted Volatility Cv | 1.1 |
| Export Weighted Below Peak Pct | 19.7% |
| Export Weighted Distance Km | 6,780 km |
| Export Weighted Tariff Pct | 0.1% |
| Latest Data Year | 2,024 |
| First Data Year | 1,995 |
| Country Years Count | 30 |
| Total Exports Latest Usd | $3.5T |
| Total Imports Latest Usd | $2.3T |
| Trade Balance Latest Usd | $1.2T |
| Exports Yoy Latest Pct | 6% |
| Exports Cagr 3y Latest Pct | 2.8% |
| Gdp Latest Million Usd | 18,743,803.2 million USD |
| Gdp Per Capita Latest Usd | $13.3K |
| Population Latest | 1,408,975,000 |
| Investment Rate Latest Pct | 44.5% |
| Savings Rate Latest Pct | 45.8% |
| Trade Openness Latest Pct | 34.6% |
| Exports Gdp Latest Pct | 20.8% |
| Active Partners Latest | 270 |
| Fta Partners Latest | 27 |
| Foreign Market Potential Latest | 10,340.4 |
| Gdp 5y Cagr Pct | 5.2% |
| Gdp Per Capita 5y Cagr Pct | 5.2% |
| Population 5y Cagr Pct | 0% |
| Partner Hhi Latest | 370.3 |
| Partner Top1 Share Latest Pct | 12.9% |
| Partner Top3 Share Latest Pct | 22.3% |
| Partner Hhi All Avg | 778.3 |
| Partner Hhi All Max | 1,343.7 |
| Product Hhi Latest | 74.2 |
| Product Top1 Share Latest Pct | 5.8% |
| Product Top3 Share Latest Pct | 10.7% |
| Product Hhi All Avg | 68.2 |
| Product Hhi All Max | 90.2 |
| Total Exports Attention Share Pct | 71.4% |
| Total Exports Critical Share Pct | 6.6% |
| Attention Level | High attention |
| Primary Risk Driver | Market access exposure |
| Macro Resilience Label | Macro trend resilient |
Annual import history
| Year | Imports | Exports | Balance | Imports YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | $130.6B | $178.6B | $48.0B | +0% |
| 1996 | $137.7B | $190.3B | $52.6B | +5.4% |
| 1997 | $142.9B | $219.7B | $76.7B | +3.8% |
| 1998 | $137.0B | $222.3B | $85.3B | -4.1% |
| 1999 | $154.8B | $246.6B | $91.8B | +13% |
| 2000 | $207.5B | $312.4B | $104.9B | +34.1% |
| 2001 | $221.8B | $327.5B | $105.7B | +6.9% |
| 2002 | $269.8B | $394.6B | $124.8B | +21.6% |
| 2003 | $376.3B | $510.2B | $133.9B | +39.5% |
| 2004 | $501.3B | $680.8B | $179.5B | +33.2% |
| 2005 | $590.7B | $860.4B | $269.7B | +17.8% |
| 2006 | $712.6B | $1.1T | $356.8B | +20.6% |
| 2007 | $856.6B | $1.3T | $461.5B | +20.2% |
| 2008 | $1.0T | $1.5T | $521.8B | +17.9% |
| 2009 | $917.2B | $1.3T | $381.4B | -9.2% |
| 2010 | $1.3T | $1.7T | $410.2B | +38.2% |
| 2011 | $1.6T | $2.0T | $381.8B | +25.2% |
| 2012 | $1.7T | $2.1T | $443.5B | +4.2% |
| 2013 | $1.8T | $2.2T | $435.7B | +6.9% |
| 2014 | $1.8T | $2.4T | $590.1B | -0.4% |
| 2015 | $1.5T | $2.3T | $792.9B | -14.8% |
| 2016 | $1.4T | $2.2T | $718.2B | -3.5% |
| 2017 | $1.7T | $2.4T | $657.8B | +17% |
| 2018 | $1.9T | $2.6T | $618.5B | +14.5% |
| 2019 | $1.9T | $2.5T | $635.1B | -2.6% |
| 2020 | $1.9T | $2.6T | $675.0B | -0.5% |
| 2021 | $2.4T | $3.2T | $819.8B | +28.6% |
| 2022 | $2.4T | $3.5T | $1.1T | +1.3% |
| 2023 | $2.3T | $3.3T | $981.6B | -4.8% |
| 2024 | $2.3T | $3.5T | $1.2T | -0.3% |
Import sectors
| Rank | HS2 | Sector | Imports | Share | Import partners | Active HS6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 85 | Electrical machinery | $522.7B | 22.5% | 192 | 262 |
| 2 | 84 | Machinery | $204.8B | 8.8% | 178 | 515 |
| 3 | 87 | Vehicles | $55.4B | 2.4% | 147 | 87 |
| 4 | 39 | Plastics | $57.5B | 2.5% | 171 | 129 |
| 5 | 94 | Furniture and lighting | $2.0B | 0.1% | 133 | 42 |
| 6 | 73 | Articles of iron or steel | $8.5B | 0.4% | 167 | 124 |
| 7 | 29 | Organic chemicals | $44.2B | 1.9% | 117 | 384 |
| 8 | 95 | Toys and sports equipment | $2.1B | 0.1% | 120 | 31 |
| 9 | 61 | Knitted clothing | $3.5B | 0.2% | 154 | 106 |
| 10 | 90 | Optical and medical instruments | $67.8B | 2.9% | 162 | 142 |
Questions about this profile
China import demand, in context
Short answers for import and supplier research.
What does the China import profile measure?
It combines reported imports, annual history, HS2 sectors, supplier breadth, economy context, and calculated indicators for China.
What is the latest reported import value for China?
China recorded $2.3T in reported imports in 2024.
Which sectors lead China's imports?
Electrical machinery leads by reported import value at $522.7B.
How many years of China import history are available?
This profile contains 30 annual rows covering 1995 through 2024.
What drives import demand?
GDP, population, investment, savings, and trade openness provide demand context.
Are the growth and concentration values forecasts?
No. They are calculated or classified from reported observations, not forecasts or guarantees.
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Data source
OECD trade statistics with CEPII context
OECD (2025), Balanced international merchandise trade statistics (BIMTS) - HS2017-6D, OECD Data Explorer (accessed on 2026-08-29). OECD BIMTS is the primary trade series for this view. Supporting bilateral trade context uses CEPII BACI bilateral trade flows (202601) under Etalab 2.0 Open Licence. Yugalinks presents derived views of reported observations and calculated indicators. Data terms: OECD Terms & Conditions.