In the first half of 2026, Shanghai's foreign trade totaled 2.55 trillion yuan ($376.37 billion), up 18.6 percent year-on-year, according to Shanghai Customs.

Imports totaled 1.41 trillion yuan, up 17.4 percent. Driven by booming trade of electronic hardware in the artificial intelligence industry chain, the city's exports surpassed the 1 trillion yuan mark for the first time, reaching 1.14 trillion yuan, up 20.1 percent.

A major growth driver is AI-related electronic hardware. Leveraging its comprehensive high-end electronics manufacturing ecosystem and mature port logistics hub, Shanghai is now deeply integrated into the global AI industry and supply chains.

From January to June, total imports and exports across five major product categories — industrial-grade transformers, energy storage batteries, servers and related accessories, integrated circuits, and solid-state drives — totaled 471.2 billion yuan, a surge of 71.8 percent.

Moreover, thanks to Shanghai's well-developed bonded logistics and distribution systems and secure, efficient customs supervision, nearly all multinational electronics companies have chosen the city as their preferred Asia-Pacific hub for transit and distribution.

The second major growth driver behind Shanghai's export milestone is the rapid expansion of Chinese robots. In the first half of 2026, the city's exports of four major robot categories — industrial robots, surgical robots, cleaning robots, and intelligent bionic robots — totaled 1.91 billion yuan, up 130 percent year-on-year.

The third growth driver is new energy vehicles and energy storage equipment, whose exports exceeded 100 billion yuan. In the first half of 2026, Shanghai's automobile exports totaled 99.01 billion yuan, up 81.6 percent, with new energy vehicles accounting for about 70 percent of the total.

At the same time, the city has expanded exports of electrical and energy storage equipment, supported by its complete industrial chains in these sectors. In the first half of 2026, exports of lithium-ion battery products, including energy storage cabinets and automotive batteries, totaled 101.63 billion yuan, surpassing the full-year 2021 level.

A fourth growth engine comes from the traditional shipbuilding sector. In the first half of 2026, Shanghai's ship exports reached a record high of 32.11 billion yuan, up 42.5 percent year-on-year. A total of 11 liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas carriers were exported, up 160 percent year-on-year.

By June 2026, Shanghai's monthly foreign trade had grown year-on-year for 17 consecutive months, including double-digit growth in each of the first six months of the year.

Source: Shanghai Observer