(Yicai) Oct. 22 -- Shanghai’s foreign trade grew 21.2 percent year-on-year to CNY1.19 trillion (USD164.2 billion) in the third quarter, driven by technological upgrading and market diversification despite a challenging global trade environment.

For the first three quarters, Shanghai’s cumulative trade rose 5.4 percent to CNY3.34 trillion, outpacing the national average by 1.4 percentage points, according to data released today by the municipal government. Exports increased 11.3 percent, 4.2 percentage points faster than the national rate, while imports rose 1.1 percent, 1.3 percentage points above the average.

This year has been tumultuous for the eastern megacity. In the first quarter, Shanghai’s total imports and exports fell 2.5 percent to CNY1.01 trillion but rebounded in the second quarter, climbing 7.2 percent to CNY1.14 trillion.

The latest figures reflect “phased achievements in Shanghai’s industrial restructuring and transformation of growth drivers,” said Zhan Yubo, director of the Research Office at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of Economics. Exports of the city’s three leading industries -- integrated circuits, biomedicine, and artificial intelligence -- totaled CNY193.7 billion (USD26.7 billion) in the first nine months, up 10.3 percent year-on-year.

Efforts to diversify export markets also paid off. Shanghai’s trade with non-traditional markets grew almost 9 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters, with exports to BRICS countries such as Brazil, Indonesia, and India jumping 28 percent and exports to Africa soaring 79 percent. In contrast, trade with the European Union and the United States fell 0.4 percent and 8.1 percent, respectively, reducing their combined share in Shanghai’s total trade by 2.5 percentage points to 27.7 percent.

Private enterprises emerged as the main growth engine. Their combined imports and exports jumped 27 percent year-on-year to CNY1.32 trillion, accounting for nearly 40 percent of Shanghai’s total trade, up 6.7 percentage points from a year earlier. The number of private firms with import and export records rose 8 percent to 46,000.

The sustainability of Shanghai’s foreign trade momentum will depend on its ability to strengthen industrial chain resilience and enhance product value-added, said Wang Jia, assistant researcher at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences. She added that continued policy support from both central and local governments will be essential to offset growing global competition and uncertainty.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine