Major Chinese Exporter Reports Growth in Foreign TradeEast China's Jiangsu Province, one of the country's economic powerhouses, generated more than US$ 8.8 billion from foreign trade for the first three months of this year, up 47.8 percent from the same period in 1999.The total figure included US$ 4.9 billion in exports, an increase of 41.8 percent year on year, and US$ 3.96 billion in imports, up 56 percent. The province ranked third in China in exports, following Guangdong Province in the southern coast and Shanghai in the same period under review. Analysts say the sharp growth in exports is largely due to exports by both state-owned enterprises and overseas-funded businesses. Official statistics show that Jiangsu's state-owned enterprises contributed 40.5 percent of the province's entire exports during the period, while overseas-funded businesses achieved US$ 2.65 billion in exports, accounting for 54 percent of the province 's total. According to figures released by the General Administration of Customs, China's foreign trade in the first quarter this year topped US$ 98.2 billion, representing a 40-percent growth from last year. Exports in the first three months hit US$ 51.7 billion in the country, up 39 percent, while imports reached US$ 46.5 billion, up 41 percent. |
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