China's auto import volume fell 6.5% year on year in 2022, with import value slightly down, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed.
Last year, the number of sedans, SUVs, and minibusses imported into China all posted year-on-year declines. The three types of vehicles accounted for 93.5% of China's total auto imports.
In December, auto import volume fell 7.2% from November but grew 6.6% from a year ago. Import value dived 16.4% from November, and logged a 15.6% year-on-year decline.
In 2022, auto sales rose 2.1% year on year to 26.86 million units in China, the world's largest automobile market.
China's road logistics price index went up in January. The index came in at 104 last month, up 0.92% over a month earlier, according to a survey jointly conducted by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and the Guangdong Lin'an Logistics Group.
The figure represents a 3.5% increase compared with the same period last year. The sub-index for full truckload logistics price, which mainly measures bulk commodity and regional transportation, rose 2.6% over one year earlier to 103.7.
The survey attributed the increase last month to factors including strong holiday consumption demand, better production prospects, and continued economic recovery.
China's chemical industry saw a strong expansion in terms of investment and exports in 2022. Investment in chemical raw materials and product manufacturing jumped 19% year on year, 7.4% points higher than the average level of all industries, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
The sector reported continuous improvements in trade structure in the period. Exports of organic chemicals reached 80.7 billion U.S. dollars, up 17% year on year, and the trade surplus soared 216% from 2021, data from the General Administration of Customs shows.
Exports of inorganic chemicals surged 68% from 2021 to 39.4 billion dollars, with the trade surplus up 57% year on year.
China's nonferrous metal industry saw a stable performance last year with growing production, profits, and revenues according to the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association.
In 2022, China produced over 67.74 million tonnes of 10 common types of nonferrous metals, up 4.3% from 2021, said the association.
The value-added output of major companies, each with an annual business revenue of at least 20 million yuan (about 2.95 million U.S. dollars), rose 5.2% last year.
Major companies recorded a combined revenue of nearly 8 trillion yuan last year, an increase of 10.5% year on year. Their total profits reached 331.5 billion yuan.
The association forecasts that the production of 10 common types of nonferrous metals will grow around 3.5% this year and the fixed-asset investment in the industry will see an increase of 5 to 10%.