China: Travel services (% of service exports, BoP)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, China's travel services (% of service exports, BoP) rose 2.76 percentage points on 2024 (from 11.58% to 14.34%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −1.08 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 6.46 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 10.22 percentage points in 2003 and the biggest yearly fall was 28.53 percentage points in 1997. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 30% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2025, China had the 108th highest value of the 134 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to China in the 2025 ranking

• Malawi — 105th of 134: 14.92%
• Norway — 106th of 134: 14.88%
• Korea, Rep. — 107th of 134: 14.79%
• Angola — 109th of 134: 13.7%
• Cyprus — 110th of 134: 13.35%
• Slovak Republic — 111th of 134: 12.55%

What this measures

Travel services cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by nonresidents during visits to that economy, or acquired from other economies by residents during visits to these other economies. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are services provided by residents to non-residents.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 44 values

Travel services (% of service exports, BoP) in nearby economies

• Australia — 60.27% (2025)
• Brunei Darussalam — 34.85% (2025)
• Cambodia — 72.58% (2025)
• Fiji — 53.08% (2024)
• French Polynesia — 47.68% (2016)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 21.54% (2025)
• Indonesia — 42.92% (2025)
• Japan — 26.03% (2025)
• Kiribati — 27.03% (2025)
• Korea, Rep. — 14.79% (2025)

More economic policy & debt data for China

• Exports of goods and services (current US$) — US$4.11 trillion (2025)
• Exports of goods and services (current LCU) — 29.54 trillion (2025)
• Exports of goods and services (% of GDP) — 21.07% (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (current US$) — US$3.29 trillion (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (current LCU) — 23.67 trillion (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (% of GDP) — 16.89% (2025)
• External balance on goods and services (current US$) — US$816.19 billion (2025)
• External balance on goods and services (current LCU) — 5.87 trillion (2025)
• External balance on goods and services (% of GDP) — 4.19% (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is China's travel services (% of service exports, BoP)?

14.34% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1982?

It is down 13.64 percentage points from 27.99% in 1982. The highest value was 49.51% in 1996 and the lowest 3.99% in 2021.

How does China rank?

108th highest of 134 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in travel services (% of service exports, BoP) unusual for China?

In 2025, China's travel services (% of service exports, BoP) rose 2.76 percentage points on 2024 (from 11.58% to 14.34%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −1.08 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 6.46 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator BX.GSR.TRVL.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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