BEIJING, July 3 (Xinhua) -- China's electric bicycle trade-in program has driven a boom in both production and sales, played an active role in expanding consumption, benefited livelihoods and promoted safety, according to the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday.

In the first six months of 2025, on average, sales of electric bicycles through the trade-in program across the country increased by 113.5 percent month on month, He Yongqian, spokesperson for the ministry, told a press conference.

By the end of June, a total of about 8.47 million new electric bicycles had been sold to replace old ones across the country, which is 6.1 times that of 2024. Sales in Jiangsu, Hebei and Zhejiang provinces all exceeded 1 million units, while in each of 16 other provincial-level regions including Anhui and Shandong, sales exceeded 100,000 units, He said.

During the same period, the total sales value reached about 24.77 billion yuan (about 3.46 billion U.S. dollars), 6.6 times that of last year. About 8.4 million buyers across the country enjoyed subsidies under the favorable policy, according to the spokesperson.

The ministry's data also shows that the industry benefits from robust production and sales under the trade-in program. In the first half of this year, the output of the top 10 brands of electric bicycles increased by 27.6 percent year on year.

Meanwhile, a total of 82,000 sales stores participated in the trade-in program, most of which were small and micro enterprises and individual merchants. On average, it increased the sales of each store by 302,000 yuan, according to the industry.

The program, which sees old electric bicycles traded in for new ones, has also ensured the safety of electric bicycle industries and consumers, according to the spokesperson. ■