An aerial view of the Meishan port area of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang Province on May 16, 2025 Photo: Courtesy of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port

Editor's Note:

Where does the vitality and resilience of China's foreign trade come from? Global Times reporters take readers to major Chinese ports to find the answer, as ports stand at the forefront of trade. Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang Province represents the hard-core strengths of China's foreign trade. This is the first installment of the series.

Unmanned trucks wait to be loaded with a container by a bridge crane at Meidong port area of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang Province, on May 15, 2025. Photo: Zhang Yashu/GT

When Zhu Shijie started working at the Chuanshan port area of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang Province in 1999 as a bridge crane operator loading and unloading containers onto or from ships, the port's annual handling of 500,000 containers was celebrated with a ceremony. In 2025, the veteran crane operator, said he hopes he could be the one to press the button that picks up this year's 38 millionth container milestone for Ningbo Zhoushan Port Group. 

Reaching that figure this year will be no small feat given the profound turbulence in global trade, as it means a growth of 4 million containers from the last year's 34 million. In fact, in his 26 years working at the port, Zhu Shijie has had a front-row seat to witness the meteoric rise of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, now the world's largest port in terms of cargo throughput. 

In 2024, it handled a total of more than 1.37 billion tons of cargo, an increase of 4 percent year-on-year, setting a record high and ranking first in the world for the 16th consecutive year.

Indeed, he has witnessed several key moments of the port's development. In 2006, when President Xi Jinping, then Party chief of Zhejiang Province, came to the port to personally press the button to pick up the 7 millionth container, Zhu Shijie was the one who operated the bridge crane.

In March 2020, when President Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visited the Chuanshan port area of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, whose throughput has recovered to normal levels due to the timely measures it adopted to resume production amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Zhu Shijie was also onsite.

Regarding the port as a hard-core power, Xi said Ningbo-Zhoushan Port plays an important role in national strategies such as the building of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the integration of the Yangtze River Delta, according to the Xinhua News Agency. 

Given its strategic importance and sheer size, the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port offers a vantage point into gauging the state of not only China's foreign trade sector but also global trade as a whole. As global trade encountered tremendous turbulence due to the US' unilateral tariffs in recent months, the Global Times recently visited the port to find out the impacts of the tariffs on China's trade with countries and regions around the world.

In interviews with the Global Times, employees like Zhu Shijie and business owners in the logistics and manufacturing sectors said that despite the negative impact on certain US-bound shipments, overall operations remained stable, with better-than-expected performances. From US clients rushing to ship orders following mutual tariff reductions to the surge in shipments to the EU, ASEAN, and other parts of the world, the scenes they described painted a vivid picture of China's resilient and robust foreign trade sector despite a rising tide of unilateralism and protectionism. 

Hardcore strength - surging above the tide

Entering the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, a bustling scene unfolded - bridge cranes are busy uploading cargoes onto the ships, with both unmanned and manned container trucks rushing to pick up or drop off containers in the port area. 

"This ship that is currently docked at the terminal comes from the East Coast of the US," He Xiaohui, assistant manager of the Operation Department of Meishan port area of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, told the Global Times, pointing to the ship on a real-time monitoring screen of all vessels at the port.

"In April, we did face the challenge of fluctuations in cargo volume on the US shipping lines. However, we still achieved a cargo throughput of 998,000 containers for the entire month, marking a 5.6 percent growth year-on-year. This week, the weekly throughput has begun to steadily rebound," said He.

Meishan port area is the terminal with the most US lines in Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, and the volume of US line containers in Meishan accounts for about 40 percent of the port's total.  

On April 2, the US government announced what it claims to be "reciprocal tariffs" against its trading partners, including China. After China took firm countermeasures to safeguard its rights and interests, the US further increased tariffs to levels that even its officials said "unsustainable." However, on May 12, after a high-level meeting in Geneva, the two countries issued a joint statement announcing the removal of significant tariffs on each other and suspending some duties for 90 days.

Highlighting the anxiety among US businesses caused by the US tariffs, after the China-US joint statement, many US clients have rushed to arrange for the shipping of their products from the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. 

At the 36,000-square-meter warehouse of Ningbo Blue Dragon Logistics in the Beilun port area of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, Global Times reporters observed dozens of forklifts moving at high speed, as if in an F1 race, loading goods such as footwear, toys, electronics, and daily necessities onto containers for export. 

Workers transport cargo for export using a forklift at the warehouse of Ningbo Blue Dragon Logistics Co in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang Province, on May 16, 2025. Photo: Zhang Yashu/GT

"From May 12 to 18, previously suspended US-bound export orders are now being expedited for shipment. The volume of goods we received increased by approximately 20 percent week-on-week, and our warehouse temporarily reached full capacity," Wang Min, business manager of Ningbo Blue Dragon Logistics Co, told the Global Times. "Chinese exporters and US importers are rushing to make up for the delay of Chinese products due to high US tariffs."

Wang said that their five-story shelves are packed every day, requiring workers to clear space daily for new export cargo coming in.

Surprisingly, Wang found that exports maintained growth in April despite a 30 percent drop in US-bound business volume. 

"Initially, we thought the export decline to the US would impact our April performance, as US exports account for about 45 percent of our total," Wang said, adding that steady growth in other shipping routes has offset the shortfall.  

Wang was among thousands of Ningbo's foreign trade-related enterprises that have made multifaceted efforts to drive exports forward against headwinds. 

As a result, Ningbo witnessed 11.5 percent year-on-year growth in its foreign trade from January to April, totaling 872.42 billion yuan ($121.1 billion). Among which, exports were up 17.9 percent year-on-year, according to statistics from the Ningbo customs. 

While some US importers eagerly await Chinese products across the Pacific, Zhu Guoqin, owner of Ningbo AT Import & Export Co Ltd., a company specializing in luggage exports, is considering redirecting about 80 containers of luggage worth $15 million, originally booked by a US customer, to other markets, as the customer has not yet contacted her for re-shipment.

She revealed that her company shared the 20 percent US tariffs on Chinese goods in March with US customers. However, after an additional 34 percent tariff in April, American clients halted orders. These tariffs were not included in the recent bilateral tariff reductions.

"This batch of luggage is designed for summer vacations, meant to be shipped to the US in March and on the shelf in April. However, the 80 containers remain in our warehouse. US exports accounted for about 25 percent of our $50 million total exports in 2024," Zhu Guoqin told Global Times.

However, the 14 production lines of Ningbo AT Import & Export Co were still running in full swing when the Global Times reporters visited its factory recently, as the company's largest market is Europe and orders are fully booked until July. 

A worker processes a piece of luggage at the factory of Ningbo AT Import & Export Co., Ltd. In Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang Province, on May 16, 2025. Photo: Zhang Yashu/GT

"Frankly, the US tariffs didn't significantly impact our production. We were just less busy," Chen Guihua, a staff member at Ningbo AT Import & Export Co., told the Global Times. 

Chen was among many export-related people who expressed confidence in China's foreign trade, even when facing headwinds of uncertainty. Such confidence also came from the growth of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port.

The unmanned trucks, running between containers "hills" inside the Meishan port area, are a manifestation of surging trade, as they allow 24-hour operation, Hu Jinqu, head of the publicity department of Ningbo Zhoushan Port Group, told the Global Times.

"Bridge cranes can be controlled from an office kilometers away from the port, with the operation difficulty largely reduced. The task that is often described as 'threading the needle in the sky' is now simplified as 'catching dolls in a claw machine'," said Hu.

This represents part of the extensive infrastructure upgrading of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, which now has more than 630 berths across 20 port areas. Meanwhile, its sea-rail transport expands the service area to neighboring provinces.

The hard-core power of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port also stems from its global connectivity, with 306 shipping routes connecting with more than 600 ports in over 200 countries and regions, according to the latest official data.

But more importantly, the people. The entire Chinese foreign trade sector has been striving to enhance its resilience.

Ningbo's enterprises vividly embody the "sweet potato economy," a theory that was scientifically explained by Xi as the Party chief of Zhejiang more than 20 years ago, symbolizing Zhejiang's growth strategy, with local investments spreading globally like sweet potato vines, enhancing international engagement and strengthening the local economy.

Well-Prepared for Uncertainties

Zhu Guoqin, for example, said that she sensed the geopolitical uncertainties ahead last year and quickly adjusted her company's target markets. 

In July 2024, Ningbo AT Import & Export Co. registered its own brands and opened flagship stores on Chinese e-commerce platforms, with domestic sales steadily increasing since the beginning of 2025. Additionally, in late 2024, the company applied to participate in South American trade fairs to explore new markets.

"These measures will likely offset the shortfall in US-bound orders in the second half of 2025," Zhu Guoqin said. "We've weathered 'tariff storms.' Every challenge has a solution." 

Many Chinese export companies had prepared for - could be as early as 2018 - the uncertainty aroused by the US tariffs.

Wang from the logistics company noted that "since the US-initiated trade war began in 2018, Chinese exporters have increasingly emphasized export diversification."

The layout of diversifying trade partners has proven effective in Ningbo's latest trade statistics. 

"In the first four months of 2025, the EU was Ningbo's largest trade partner. It was the US in 2024," Gao Xuefeng, deputy section chief of Logistics Supervision Section 3 in Daxie Customs affiliated with the Ningbo Customs, told the Global Times.

From January to April, trade between Ningbo and the US decreased by 0.4 percent year-on-year, despite a 2.8 percent growth in export. In contrast, Ningbo's trade with the EU surged 18.6 percent year-on-year, whilst trade with ASEAN grew 22.7 percent. 

It is worth noting that for the trade volume under the multilateral mechanism, Ningbo witnessed a trade growth of 15.9 percent with BRI partner countries, accounting for 51.6 percent of total.

In the first four months, China's total foreign trade with BRI partner countries surged 3.9 percent, accounting for 51.3 percent of its total. China's foreign trade with ASEAN, its largest trade partner, grew 9.2 percent year-on-year, accounting for 16.8 percent of the country's total, official data showed.

The continuous growth and expanding friend circles of China's foreign trade can be seen from the evolution of the height of the bridge crane at ports. 

From a 32-meter-high bridge crane in 1999, working on the crane, to a 52-meter-high bridge crane, working remotely from an office, Zhu Shijie's workplace transformation exemplifies this development.

"The change in height means a sixfold increase in cargo handling capacity. The 52-meter-high bridge crane, with 5G and other high-tech features, enables 24-hour cargo unload and upload operation for a ship carrying 24,000 TEUs - currently the world's largest cargo ship," said Zhu Shijie.

The crane upgrades align with surging cargo handling needs at the port. On its path to becoming a world-class port with hard-core strengths, Ningbo-Zhoushan Port is becoming an open hub, taking on the role of a global supply chain organizer and protector, reflecting the high-quality development and resilience of Chinese foreign trade.

This resilience is evident in both volume and structural optimization. Therefore, when Zhu Shijie presses the button for the new container milestone at the end of 2025, that container may well be heading to or coming from emerging markets or the Global South.