SME exports remain on steady track in July

Exports by China's small and medium-sized enterprises remained in positive territory in July, with the purchasing managers' index for the sector above a threshold separating expansion from contraction, according to an industry report.

The PMI for SMEs (B2B) Merchandise Export — an index tracked by B2B cross-border trade payment platform XTransfer — reached 50.4, reflecting the resilience of these midsized firms.

According to the report, clothing, furniture and home appliances — "old three items" — formed the major export items of SMEs.

Categories related to emerging industries, such as auto parts of new energy vehicles and intelligent audio-video in-car equipment, performed well in terms of export volume.

The report was compiled through sampling surveys of SMEs covering foreign trade on XTransfer's platform, and analyzing information related to the complete export process, such as those concerning export orders, prices and procurement.

The report aims to provide guidance and strategic basis for export-oriented SMEs in their export trade business in the near future, said Deng Guobiao, founder and CEO of XTransfer.

Among the polled SMEs, the number of major export markets reached 152 over the past three months, with the United States, the Hong Kong special administrative region, the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia being the top five.

"According to indexes, the SMEs did well in trade with emerging economies of ASEAN, Africa and Latin America, indicating continued exploration of new markets," Deng said.

A trade summit held recently in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, attracted more than 3,000 Chinese SME owners, with discussions focused on the digital transformation within the foreign trade sector.

"It is worth noting that the logistics efficiency index for exports to Latin American countries is significantly higher than other regions, mainly due to the increasingly mature air and sea freight routes between China and Latin American countries this year," Deng said during the summit.

Founded in 2017 and serving over 550,000 SMEs, the Shanghai-based XTransfer's cross-border trade payment platform provides one-stop solutions for companies, including foreign trade collection, multicurrency cash management, investment and risk management services.

"With our comprehensive services, we are able to cover more business scenarios, providing fast payments to more markets worldwide," Deng added.

XTransfer also has branches overseas. By cooperating with well-known multinational banks and financial institutions, XTransfer has built a unified global multicurrency clearing network and a data-based, automated, internet-based and intelligent anti-money laundering risk control infrastructure centering on SMEs.

"We use technology as a bridge to link large financial institutions and SMEs around the world, allowing them to enjoy the same level of cross-border financial services as large multinational corporations," he said.