China’s total trade in services reached nearly 3.78 trillion yuan ($562.47 billion) in the first half of the year, up 8.3 percent year on year, while service exports jumped 17.6 percent to 1.50 trillion yuan. This rapid expansion reflects structural upgrading, policy optimization, and growing efficiency across China’s services sector.

Travel services led the growth, with exports surging 31.1 percent to 229.2 billion yuan. Streamlined visa-free entry policies and simplified tax-refund systems have encouraged international visitors to stay longer and explore beyond major metropolitan areas. Homestay and travel data show foreign tourists visiting hundreds of Chinese cities and extending their stays, increasing demand for domestic digital products, apparel, and cultural goods alongside traditional souvenirs.

Knowledge-intensive services also saw significant momentum, with exports rising 12.8 percent to 805.67 billion yuan and accounting for more than half of all service exports. Chinese high-tech firms are increasingly exporting advanced capabilities directly to global markets, such as delivering automated robotic laboratories for pharmaceutical R&D and licensing AI computing power internationally through standardized application programming interfaces.

At the same time, Chinese consumer brands are expanding their global footprint through localized models. Beverage chains like MIXUE, which now operates over 4,500 stores across 16 countries, are tailoring product offerings to regional preferences while introducing Chinese tea culture abroad. As China continues to broaden access to its services sector, these diverse export streams are becoming an increasingly vital engine for global economic momentum.

Source: People’s Daily