China-Kuwait trade ties flourish

China-Kuwait trade ties flourish

By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: Total bilateral trade between China and Kuwait has reached a historical high in 2022, amounting to $31.48 billion, Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Kuwait Cheng Yongru said Wednesday at the promotion conference of the 133rd Canton Fair, scheduled to be held on April 15.

Total trade has jumped by 42.3 percent year-on-year, he said. China exported goods amounting to $4.97 billion to Kuwait and imported good amounting to $26.51 billion from Kuwait, where both imports and exports achieved growth. So far, China is Kuwait’s largest trading partner and Kuwait is an important source of crude oil imports to China.

He added that China exported 524 buses and 35,500 passenger cars to Kuwait – double the volume of cars exported in the previous year. According to the information of the Kuwait Public Transport Company, the company has cooperated with Chinese automakers since 2006 and has imported about 1,100 traditional energy buses from China, accounting for more than 95 percent of the Kuwait bus market share.

“In January of 2023, the electric bus made in China was successfully put into the Kuwait market, becoming the first electric bus officially operated in Kuwait. We are confident that enterprises of