China's national development zones important platform to keep foreign trade, investment stable

BEIJING, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- China's state-level economic and technological development zones have played an important role in high-quality development and the stability of foreign trade and investment, the Ministry of Commerce said.

Official data from the ministry showed, foreign trade in the 230 development zones reviewed by the ministry totaled 10.3 trillion yuan (about 1.45 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2022, accounting for 25 percent of China's total foreign trade.

In particular, trade of high-tech products in the development zones reached 3 trillion yuan in 2022, accounting for 27 percent of the overall high-tech trade volume in China.

Actual foreign direct investment in these development zones stood at around 43.2 billion U.S. dollars, making up 23 percent of the country's total, data showed.

The review showed that the development zones boasted stronger scientific and technological innovation capabilities, with the number of R&D institutions at or above the provincial level rising to 12,000 by the end of 2022.

Official data showed that the combined gross domestic product of these zones came in at 14 trillion yuan in 2022, contributing 12 percent to China's total.