Imports of food, aquatic products and fruits by private companies in Guangzhou came to more than three-quarters of the total import volume they achieved, helping the city reach a new record in foreign trade in 2024.

The total trade volume hit 1.12 trillion yuan ($157.75 billion), up year-on-year by 3 percent.

The city sold products valued at 700.55 billion yuan abroad, up 7.8 percent year-on-year, exceeding more than 700 billion yuan for the first time.

"It is a breakthrough and the first time that imports of food, aquatic products and fruits represented 75 percent of the private companies' total imports volume," said Guan Kunming, director of the statistical analysis department with Guangzhou Customs.

"The proportion of meat, edible aquatic products and related products all exceeded 80 percent of the private companies' total imports, with the city's cherries all imported by private enterprises last year," Guan said at a news conference in Guangzhou on Monday.

"Food import is an international dining trade that directly reaches residents' dining tables, and from seasonal durian to the new year's cherries, from Atlantic lobsters to North Pacific king crabs, private enterprises in the southern metropolis are bringing more and more high-quality food ingredients from around the world into thousands of households in Guangzhou," he said.

Huang Bin, deputy director of Guangzhou Customs, said that they have taken the lead in implementing on-site inspection for chilled aquatic products at Baiyun International Airport and rapid inspection for cherries at Nansha Port. The imports of chilled aquatic products and cherries witnessed a year-on-year growth of more than 40 percent in 2024.

"In the recent cherry production season in the Southern Hemisphere, for every two cherries imported nationwide, one is imported through Nansha Port," said Huang.

Huang promised to continue improving supervision efficiency and service standards to better serve the foreign trade industry in Guangzhou.