Xiamen Port provides a key gateway for Fujian's imports and exports with the LDCs. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Fujian province's trade with the world's least developed countries or LDCs rose 25.9 percent year on year to 76.62 billion yuan ($11.15 billion) in 2025, largely driven by China's zero-tariff policy for the LDCs, according to Xiamen Customs.

Imports surged due to a sharp rise in commodity inflows under the zero-tariff policy. Fujian imported 14.89-billion-yuan worth of metal ores and concentrates from the LDCs last year, up 110 percent from a year earlier. Imports of unwrought copper and copper materials rose 65.5 percent to 6.07 billion yuan, while crude oil imports jumped 445.6 percent to 840 million yuan.

Mechanical and electrical products remained Fujian's primary exports to the LDCs, totaling 18 billion yuan in 2025, up 20.4 percent year on year. Export data indicate a rapid shift toward higher value-added goods. Shipments of emerging categories, including electric vehicles and lithium batteries, reached 1.28 billion yuan, a 26.8 percent increase. Electric vehicle exports accounted for 830 million yuan, up 26.2 percent, while lithium battery shipments surged 2.3-fold to 310 million yuan.

Hyundai Motors Center (Xiamen), the city's largest auto exporter, shipped over 100 million yuan in vehicles to the LDCs in 2025, meeting strong demand for logistics, passenger, and infrastructure vehicles.