Group 1 - Indonesia officially became a member of BRICS at the beginning of 2025, with a total of 20 member and partner countries by the end of June [1] - In the first half of the year, China's trade with other BRICS countries reached 6.11 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.9%, accounting for 28.1% of China's total trade [1] - The expansion of the BRICS cooperation mechanism is seen as a significant step for the Global South, promoting industrial transformation and trade growth [1] Group 2 - BRICS countries are leveraging their comparative advantages in various sectors, achieving notable results in trade cooperation in industrial, agricultural, and infrastructure fields [2] - In agriculture, China imported palm oil and rapeseed oil from other BRICS countries, with a year-on-year increase of 13.7%, and exports of agricultural machinery grew by 34.7% [2] - The cooperation in the infrastructure sector is accelerating, with significant increases in China's exports of road rollers and concrete mixers to other BRICS countries [3] Group 3 - The "Smart Customs" demonstration center for BRICS countries was launched on June 30, providing a platform for sharing customs experiences and facilitating trade policy understanding [4] - The center offers resources in multiple languages and includes sections on trade data, customs news, and enterprise services, enhancing communication among BRICS customs [4] - A dual-language curriculum has been established to support capacity building and cooperation among BRICS customs, showcasing China's smart customs practices [4] Group 4 - Future efforts will focus on accelerating customs capacity building and cooperation among BRICS countries, supporting trade exchanges effectively [5]

Core Insights - Guangzhou's foreign trade import and export reached 605.05 billion yuan in the first half of the year, marking a historical breakthrough of 600 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of 15.5% [1] - Trade with BRICS countries and partner nations grew by 24.4%, accounting for 25.2% of Guangzhou's total trade value, an increase of 1.8 percentage points compared to the same period last year [1][2] - The number of trading partners with a trade scale exceeding 10 billion yuan increased to 19, up by 5 from the previous year [1] Trade Performance - In traditional markets, Guangzhou's total import and export to the US, Europe, the UK, Japan, and Hong Kong reached 267.39 billion yuan, growing by 12% [1] - Trade with emerging markets increased by 18.5%, raising their share of total trade to 55.8% [1] - Exports of electric vehicles, packaging machinery, and other goods to BRICS countries performed better than the overall export performance [2] Import Dynamics - Over half of energy products, one-third of primary plastics, and nearly a quarter of agricultural products imported into Guangzhou came from BRICS countries, also outperforming overall import trends [2] - New import agreements for agricultural products with BRICS nations, including Vietnam and Thailand, have expanded consumer choices in China [2] BRICS Expansion - The number of BRICS member countries and partner nations reached 20 by the end of June, with double-digit growth in trade with 16 of these countries [2] - Notable growth in trade with Malaysia, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE exceeded 40% [2]