Commodity Origins

What does China produce and export?

China ranks in the top ten producers of 91 commodities: aluminum (#1, 61% of world output in 2025), antimony (#1, 36% of world output in 2025), apples (#1, 52% of world output in 2024), bismuth (#1, 86% of world output in 2025), cinnamon (#1, 38% of world output in 2024), coal (#1, 52% of world output in 2025) and more. It is a top-ten exporter of apples (#1, 16% of world export value in 2024), bismuth (#1, 52% of world export value in 2024), ginger (#1, 56% of world export value in 2024), graphite (#1, 42% of world export value in 2024), magnesium (#1, 73% of world export value in 2024) and more.

Where china is produced, 2025World map shaded by share of china production in 2025. Darkest: China 100%. 1 producing countries shown.Fiji: no reported productionTanzania: no reported productionWestern Sahara: no reported productionCanada: no reported productionUnited States: no reported productionKazakhstan: no reported productionUzbekistan: no reported productionPapua New Guinea: no reported productionIndonesia: no reported productionArgentina: no reported productionChile: no reported productionDR Congo: no reported productionSomalia: no reported productionKenya: no reported productionSudan: no reported productionChad: no reported productionHaiti: no reported productionDominican Republic: no reported productionRussia: no reported productionBahamas: no reported productionFalkland Isds (Malvinas): no reported productionNorway: no reported productionGreenland: no reported productionFr. South Antarctic Terr.: no reported productionTimor-Leste: no reported productionSouth Africa: no reported productionLesotho: no reported productionMexico: no reported productionUruguay: no reported productionBrazil: no reported productionBolivia: no reported productionPeru: no reported productionColombia: no reported productionPanama: no reported productionCosta Rica: no reported productionNicaragua: no reported productionHonduras: no reported productionEl Salvador: no reported productionGuatemala: no reported productionBelize: no reported productionVenezuela: no reported productionGuyana: no reported productionSuriname: no reported productionFrance: no reported productionEcuador: no reported productionPuerto Rico: no reported productionJamaica: no reported productionCuba: no reported productionZimbabwe: no reported productionBotswana: no reported productionNamibia: no reported productionSenegal: no reported productionMali: no reported productionMauritania: no reported productionBenin: no reported productionNiger: no reported productionNigeria: no reported productionCameroon: no reported productionTogo: no reported productionGhana: no reported productionIvory Coast: no reported productionGuinea: no reported productionGuinea-Bissau: no reported productionLiberia: no reported productionSierra Leone: no reported productionBurkina Faso: no reported productionCentral African Republic: no reported productionRepublic of the Congo: no reported productionGabon: no reported productionEquatorial Guinea: no reported productionZambia: no reported productionMalawi: no reported productionMozambique: no reported productionEswatini: no reported productionAngola: no reported productionBurundi: no reported productionIsrael: no reported productionLebanon: no reported productionMadagascar: no reported productionPalestine: no reported productionGambia: no reported productionTunisia: no reported productionAlgeria: no reported productionJordan: no reported productionUnited Arab Emirates: no reported productionQatar: no reported productionKuwait: no reported productionIraq: no reported productionOman: no reported productionVanuatu: no reported productionCambodia: no reported productionThailand: no reported productionLaos: no reported productionMyanmar: no reported productionVietnam: no reported productionNorth Korea: no reported productionSouth Korea: no reported productionMongolia: no reported productionIndia: no reported productionBangladesh: no reported productionBhutan: no reported productionNepal: no reported productionPakistan: no reported productionAfghanistan: no reported productionTajikistan: no reported productionKyrgyzstan: no reported productionTurkmenistan: no reported productionIran: no reported productionSyria: no reported productionArmenia: no reported productionSweden: no reported productionBelarus: no reported productionUkraine: no reported productionPoland: no reported productionAustria: no reported productionHungary: no reported productionMoldova: no reported productionRomania: no reported productionLithuania: no reported productionLatvia: no reported productionEstonia: no reported productionGermany: no reported productionBulgaria: no reported productionGreece: no reported productionTurkey: no reported productionAlbania: no reported productionCroatia: no reported productionSwitzerland: no reported productionLuxembourg: no reported productionBelgium: no reported productionNetherlands: no reported productionPortugal: no reported productionSpain: no reported productionIreland: no reported productionNew Caledonia: no reported productionSolomon Islands: no reported productionNew Zealand: no reported productionAustralia: no reported productionSri Lanka: no reported productionChina: 100% (1)Taiwan: no reported productionItaly: no reported productionDenmark: no reported productionUnited Kingdom: no reported productionIceland: no reported productionAzerbaijan: no reported productionGeorgia: no reported productionPhilippines: no reported productionMalaysia: no reported productionBrunei: no reported productionSlovenia: no reported productionFinland: no reported productionSlovakia: no reported productionCzechia: no reported productionEritrea: no reported productionJapan: no reported productionParaguay: no reported productionYemen: no reported productionSaudi Arabia: no reported productionAntarcticaN. CyprusCyprus: no reported productionMorocco: no reported productionEgypt: no reported productionLibya: no reported productionEthiopia: no reported productionDjibouti: no reported productionSomalilandUganda: no reported productionRwanda: no reported productionBosnia and Herzegovina: no reported productionNorth Macedonia: no reported productionSerbia: no reported productionMontenegro: no reported productionKosovoTrinidad and Tobago: no reported productionSouth Sudan: no reported production<0.5%0.5–1%1–2.5%2.5–5%5–10%10–20%≥20%
Share of world production, 2025. Countries with no reported production are unshaded.

China's position begins with a mismatch: it built the world's largest steel, construction and manufacturing base on a land area whose ore bodies are low-grade and whose farmland per person is small. Its domestic iron ore averages far below the iron content of Australian or Brazilian rock, so the coastal mills buy the difference. In 2024 China took 71% of world iron ore import value and 63% of world copper import value (CEPII BACI). Copper follows the electrical grid, air conditioning and property cycles rather than steel, but the logic is the same: mine output at home covered 7.8% of the world total in 2025 (USGS), far short of what the refineries consume.

The soybean trade was created by policy. China chose in the 1990s to stay self-sufficient in food grain but not in oilseeds, and as pork and poultry production industrialized the crushers needed protein meal. China bought 59% of world soybean import value in 2024 (CEPII BACI) while growing 5.2% of the world's soybeans in 2024 (FAOSTAT). Energy went the same way after domestic oilfields at Daqing matured: China took 24% of world crude oil import value in 2024 (CEPII BACI).

Where China dominates production, cheap power explains it. Smelters built on Shandong and Inner Mongolia coal, and more lately on Yunnan hydropower, made 61% of the world's primary aluminum in 2025 (USGS). Very little of that metal leaves as ingot, because an export tax pushes shipments into semi-finished forms instead; China still imported 9.8% of world aluminum import value in 2024 (CEPII BACI).

Farm output is large but consumed at home. Irrigated fields in Xinjiang, mechanized and picked largely by machine since the 2010s, grew 23% of the world's cotton in 2023 (FAOSTAT). Grain policy runs on procurement, minimum prices and large state reserves, so record harvests rarely show up as exports.

What does China produce?

Commodities where China is a top-ten producer
CommodityWorld rankShare of worldProductionYearSource
Aluminum Metals161%45 million t2025USGS MCS
Antimony Metals136%40,000 t2025USGS MCS
Apples Fruit & vegetables152%51.3 million t2024FAOSTAT
Bismuth Metals186%14,000 t2025USGS MCS
Cinnamon Softs138%94,216 t2024FAOSTAT
Coal Energy152%4,663 million tonnes2025Energy Institute
Cotton Fibres & other raw materials123%5.6 million t2023FAOSTAT
Eggs Livestock, meat & dairy135%30.9 million t2024FAOSTAT
Fluorspar Metals160%6 million t2025USGS MCS
Gallium Metals199%900 t2025USGS MCS
Gold Metals112%380 t2025USGS MCS
Grapes Fruit & vegetables122%16.8 million t2024FAOSTAT
Graphite Metals178%1.4 million t2025USGS MCS
Honey Livestock, meat & dairy124%444,800 t2024FAOSTAT
Indium Metals169%760 t2025USGS MCS
Lamb Livestock, meat & dairy123%2.6 million t2024FAOSTAT
Lead Metals142%1.9 million t2025USGS MCS
Magnesium Metals186%950,000 t2025USGS MCS
Molybdenum Metals137%97,000 t2025USGS MCS
Peanuts Oilseeds & vegetable oils134%19.6 million t2024FAOSTAT
Phosphate rock Fertilizers144%110 million t2025USGS MCS
Plywood Timber & forest products153%60.4 million m32024faostat_fo
Pork Livestock, meat & dairy146%57.1 million t2024FAOSTAT
Potatoes Fruit & vegetables124%94.8 million t2024FAOSTAT
Rare earths Metals169%270,000 t2025USGS MCS
Shrimp Seafood131%3.7 million t2024fao_fisheries
Silicon Metals187%4 million t2025USGS MCS
Steel Metals152%980 million t2025USGS MCS
Tea Softs150%16.3 million t2024FAOSTAT
Tellurium Metals180%800 t2025USGS MCS
Tin Metals124%71,000 t2025USGS MCS
Titanium Metals134%3.2 million t2025USGS MCS
Tobacco Softs137%2.3 million t2024FAOSTAT
Tomatoes Fruit & vegetables133%61.6 million t2024FAOSTAT
Tungsten Metals179%67,000 t2025USGS MCS
Vanadium Metals172%82,000 t2025USGS MCS
Wheat Grains & cereals118%140.1 million t2024FAOSTAT
Wool Fibres & other raw materials121%364,481 t2024FAOSTAT
Zinc Metals132%4.1 million t2025USGS MCS
Arsenic Metals239%24,000 t2025USGS MCS
Bananas Fruit & vegetables28.4%11.8 million t2024FAOSTAT
Barite Metals225%2.2 million t2025USGS MCS
Canola Oilseeds & vegetable oils219%16.9 million t2024FAOSTAT
Chicken Livestock, meat & dairy212%15.4 million t2024FAOSTAT
Corn Grains & cereals224%294.9 million t2024FAOSTAT
Fishmeal Seafood210%584,028 t2024fao_fisheries
Lithium Metals221%62,000 t2025USGS MCS
Orange juice Fruit & vegetables211%7.6 million t2024FAOSTAT
Oranges Fruit & vegetables211%7.6 million t2024FAOSTAT
Rhenium Metals225%20 t2025USGS MCS
Rice Grains & cereals225%207.5 million t2024FAOSTAT
Sawnwood Timber & forest products214%60.7 million m32024faostat_fo
Silk Fibres & other raw materials232%147,000 t2024FAOSTAT
Uranium Energy217%485 terawatt-hours2025Energy Institute
Bauxite Metals320%87 million t2025USGS MCS
Beef Livestock, meat & dairy310%7 million t2024FAOSTAT
Beryllium Metals318%77 t2025USGS MCS
Ginger Fruit & vegetables312%585,378 t2024FAOSTAT
Linseed Oilseeds & vegetable oils39.3%280,000 t2024FAOSTAT
Mangoes Fruit & vegetables36.6%4.1 million t2024FAOSTAT
Milk Livestock, meat & dairy35.2%40.8 million t2024FAOSTAT
Potash Fertilizers313%6.3 million t2025USGS MCS
Silver Metals313%3,400 t2025USGS MCS
Strontium Metals318%80,000 t2025USGS MCS
Copper Metals47.8%1.8 million t2025USGS MCS
Feldspar Metals412%3.7 million t2025USGS MCS
Iron ore Metals411%290 million t2025USGS MCS
Logs Timber & forest products49.8%190.9 million m32024faostat_fo
Natural gas Energy46.3%264 billion cubic metres2025Energy Institute
Soybeans Oilseeds & vegetable oils45.2%20.7 million t2024FAOSTAT
Sugar Softs45.3%10 million t2023FAOSTAT
Zirconium Metals48.3%100,000 t2025USGS MCS
Natural rubber Fibres & other raw materials55.9%877,600 t2024FAOSTAT
Pineapples Fruit & vegetables57.3%2.1 million t2024FAOSTAT
Pistachios Fruit & vegetables55.7%78,986 t2024FAOSTAT
Sisal Fibres & other raw materials56.1%14,292 t2024FAOSTAT
Tantalum Metals53.2%80 t2025USGS MCS
Vanilla Softs56.1%435 t2024FAOSTAT
Helium Metals61.6%3 million cubic meters2025USGS MCS
Jute Fibres & other raw materials60.3%9,632 t2024FAOSTAT
Nickel Metals63.1%120,000 t2025USGS MCS
Niobium Metals6<0.1%40 t2025USGS MCS
Cloves Softs70.7%1,337 t2024FAOSTAT
Crude oil Energy74.3%4,340 thousand barrels daily2025Energy Institute
Hazelnuts Fruit & vegetables72.1%25,437 t2024FAOSTAT
Manganese Metals73.5%700,000 t2025USGS MCS
Sesame seed Oilseeds & vegetable oils85.7%380,000 t2024FAOSTAT
Sorghum Grains & cereals84.8%3.1 million t2024FAOSTAT
Lentils Grains & cereals92.1%167,596 t2024FAOSTAT
Pepper Softs93.7%34,588 t2024FAOSTAT
Cobalt Metals100.6%2,000 t2025USGS MCS

What does China export?

Top 10 China commodity exports, 2024Bar chart of top 10 China commodity exports in 2024: Steel 28%, Silver 16%, Plywood 27%, Silicon 41%, Tea 17%, Apples 16%, Grapes 9.7%, Nickel 8.3%, Chicken 2.9%, Rice 2.4%; rest of world <0.1%.SteelSteel: 28%, $19.4 billion28%SilverSilver: 16%, $5.2 billion16%PlywoodPlywood: 27%, $4.6 billion27%SiliconSilicon: 41%, $1.6 billion41%TeaTea: 17%, $1.3 billion17%ApplesApples: 16%, $1.3 billion16%GrapesGrapes: 9.7%, $1.3 billion9.7%NickelNickel: 8.3%, $1.2 billion8.3%ChickenChicken: 2.9%, $1 billion2.9%RiceRice: 2.4%, $952.2 million2.4%Rest of worldRest of world: <0.1%, $0<0.1%
China's largest commodity exports by value. Each bar's share is that commodity's share of world trade in it, not its share of China's own exports — the two are unrelated and shown so a bar near 100% marks a commodity China dominates globally rather than one it merely exports a lot of.
Top 10 China commodity exports in 2024
RankCommodityExport value (US$)Share of world
1Steel$19.4 billion28%
2Silver$5.2 billion16%
3Plywood$4.6 billion27%
4Silicon$1.6 billion41%
5Tea$1.3 billion17%
6Apples$1.3 billion16%
7Grapes$1.3 billion9.7%
8Nickel$1.2 billion8.3%
9Chicken$1 billion2.9%
10Rice$952.2 million2.4%
Rest of world$0<0.1%

China's own tracked-export mix

Unlike the chart above, this treemap sizes each commodity by its share of China's own $68.5 billion of tracked exports, not by world trade. Steel alone is 28% of it. See the full export dependency report for how China compares with other countries.

China's tracked export mix by commodityOther tracked commodities: 32.2%; Steel: 28.3%; Gold: 19.9%; Silver: 7.6%; Plywood: 6.7%; Natural gas: 5.3%.Other tracked commodities: 32.2%Other tracked co…32.2%Steel: 28.3%Steel28.3%Gold: 19.9%Gold19.9%Silver: 7.6%Silver7.6%Plywood: 6.7%Plywood6.7%Natural gas: 5.3%Natural gas5.3%
Commodities where China is a top-ten exporter
CommodityWorld rankShare of world exportsExport valueYear
Apples116%$1.3 billion2024
Bismuth152%$26.8 million2024
Ginger156%$722.6 million2024
Graphite142%$227.8 million2024
Magnesium173%$664.7 million2024
Plywood127%$4.6 billion2024
Rare earths138%$422.1 million2024
Silicon141%$1.6 billion2024
Silk148%$177.8 million2024
Silver116%$5.2 billion2024
Steel128%$19.4 billion2024
Barite216%$150.4 million2024
Honey210%$237.2 million2024
Phosphate fertilizers217%$595.6 million2024
Vanadium219%$125 million2024
Cobalt33.5%$166.1 million2024
Fluorspar39.5%$49.7 million2024
Grapes39.7%$1.3 billion2024
Pepper314%$875.5 million2024
Tea317%$1.3 billion2024
Yams311%$27.3 million2024
Bauxite41.9%$222.6 million2024
Cassava47.7%$264.2 million2024
Cinnamon415%$128.4 million2024
Feldspar46.4%$43.3 million2024
Lithium41.6%$62.6 million2024
Peanuts410%$482.5 million2024
Sesame seed45.7%$447.7 million2024
Nickel58.3%$1.2 billion2024
Niobium52%$67.6 million2024
Tin57.6%$487.9 million2024
Eggs64.9%$288.7 million2024
Jute61.4%$3 million2024
Molybdenum65.5%$446.9 million2024
Boron70.8%$9 million2024
Iridium71.4%$32.6 million2024
Oranges73.4%$185.4 million2024
Tobacco74.1%$580.3 million2024
Wool71.4%$38.4 million2024
Beryllium80.2%$63,9262024
Chicken82.9%$1 billion2024
Manganese80.9%$54.4 million2024
Pistachios80.8%$25.9 million2024
Potatoes83.7%$261.4 million2024
Rice82.4%$952.2 million2024
Shrimp93%$941.6 million2024
Tomatoes101.7%$199.9 million2024
Uranium10<0.1%$19,5042024

Top-ten importer of

Sources: FAOSTAT (crops and livestock), USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries (minerals), Energy Institute Statistical Review (energy) for production; CEPII BACI for trade. Ranks count only the commodities on this site.

China commodity by commodity

One page for each commodity where China is a top-five producer or exporter with at least 3% of the world total.

China in the pattern reports

What the cross-commodity reports under Patterns say about China, computed from the same data as this page.

What China uses

China had about 1,423 million people and a food supply of 3,527 kilocalories per person a day in FAO's 2023 food balance sheets. Its eight largest supplies among the commodities tracked there:

Largest domestic supplies of tracked commodities in China, 2023
CommodityDomestic supplyShare of worldkg per personSelf-sufficiencyImported
Corn310 million tonnes26%7.1 (#87 of 140)92%8.3%
Rice213 million tonnes28%130 (#18 of 141)99%1.9%
Wheat158 million tonnes19%75 (#74 of 143)89%12%
Soybeans121 million tonnes32%5.4 (#4 of 141)16%84%
Potatoes91.1 million tonnes24%49 (#49 of 143)100%0.3%
Milk79.7 million tonnes7.3%35 (#111 of 142)59%42%
Tomatoes65.1 million tonnes33%40 (#33 of 142)108%0.1%
Pork60.0 million tonnes49%42 (#10 of 141)97%2.9%

FAO reports a negative domestic supply for China's yams (−11 thousand tonnes; production 0 tonnes, imports 0 tonnes, exports 11 thousand tonnes), meaning exports exceed production plus imports in the year. These are not counted as use and are left out of the table above.

FAOSTAT Food Balance Sheets. Per-person rank counts countries of at least 1 million people. See consumption and self-sufficiency.

Who supplies China

How long China's own reserves would last

USGS national reserve figures, rounded. A short national figure usually reflects how little has been proved up, not when mining stops. See country reserve life.

China and critical minerals

China is the largest producer of 18 minerals on a US or EU critical list, each at 20% or more of world output: gallium (99%, 2025), silicon (87%, 2025), magnesium (86%, 2025), bismuth (86%, 2025), tellurium (80%, 2025), tungsten (79%, 2025), graphite (78%, 2025), vanadium (72%, 2025), and 10 more. Source: the concentration report on USGS, FAOSTAT and Energy Institute production.

The export controls register lists 29 measures imposed by China, of which 25 are in force, suspended or scheduled as of the register's date.

Downloads and citation

This country's rankings as JSON · PDF summary. Cite as: Commodity Origins, "What does China produce and export?", https://commodityorigins.com/countries/CHN/ (CC BY 4.0).

Data updated 22 October 2026.

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