The head of the Foreign Trade Department of the Ministry of Commerce discussed the operation of China's foreign trade from January to May 2021, stating that during this period, China's foreign trade continued its growth momentum. The total import and export value, in Renminbi (hereinafter the same), reached 14.76 trillion yuan, marking a new record high for the same period. The year-on-year growth rates for imports, exports, and total trade were 28.2%, 30.1%, and 25.9%, respectively, all reaching the highest levels in the past decade. Compared to the same period in 2019, imports, exports, and total trade increased by 21.6%, 23.6%, and 19.2%, respectively. The main characteristics are as follows: 1. Export growth to major trading partners accelerated. Exports to major trading partners maintained rapid growth, with the growth rates to the US, ASEAN, and the EU reaching 38.9%, 29.3%, and 27.9%, respectively. Exports to the BRICS countries grew by 42.8%, 12.7 percentage points higher than the overall growth rate. 2. The share of exports through general trade continued to rise. With a stronger industrial foundation and increasing self-developing capabilities, general trade exports grew by 34.5%, boosting the overall growth rate by 20.3 percentage points, with the share increasing by 2 percentage points to 60.9% compared to last year. 3. The competitiveness of foreign trade entities was further enhanced. Private enterprises expanded in scale, and their role as a "stabilizer" in foreign trade was prominent. From January to May, private enterprises exported 4.53 trillion yuan, growing by 39.4%, increasing the overall growth rate by 20.7 percentage points, with the share rising by 3.4 percentage points to 56.3% compared to last year. 4. Exports of mechanical and electrical products and labor-intensive products continued to grow. Exports of mechanical and electrical products increased by 31.9%, maintaining stable proportions, with household appliances, auto parts, and auto exports growing by 42.6%, 37.6%, and 95.8%, respectively. Textile exports, affected by a significant drop in mask exports, decreased by 10.3%. Excluding textiles, exports of the other six major labor-intensive product categories grew by 40.1%, 10 percentage points higher than the overall growth rate. 5. The rise in prices of some bulk commodities boosted import growth rates. From January to May, iron ore, copper, refined oil, soybeans, steel, and crude oil rose by 62.7%, 35.1%, 22.1%, 18.7%, 9.8%, and 9.1%, respectively, with the price factors collectively increasing the import growth rate by 5.7 percentage points.