Foreign Trade Volume Tops US$387 Billion in First 10 MonthsThe total volume of China's foreign trade in the first 10 months this year in China reached US$387.1 billion, surpassing that of the whole of 1999.Statistics released by the General Administration of Customs November 10 show that the total imports and exports from January to October increased 35 percent from the same period last year. China's exports reached $205.1 billion, up 32.2 percent, in the first 10 months. Imports of the period added up to US$182 billion, up 38.6 percent. Analysts here said the foreign trade surge was related to the economic recovery in Asia and its exports increase to its leading trade partners -- the United States, Japan, and the European Union. While China's exports to its top 10 trading partners all increased at least 20 percent, its exports to the Republic of Korea, countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Russia increased more than 40 percent. In addition, China's exports to the United States reached US$43.37 billion, up 27.2 percent. Its exports to Japan reached US$33.73 billion , up 32.4 percent; to the EU US$31.49 billion, up 31.6 percent. The exports of China's machinery and electronic products, furniture and rolled steel rose by a large margin. The exports of machinery and electronics products, in particular, surged 39.9 percent to US$85.8 billion, making it the largest export category of China's export commodities. The exports of garments, textile raw materials, footwear, travel-use items, suitcases and toys only slightly increased. China imported more primary goods and electronics products during the 10 months. The import volume of crude oil, for example, reached 57.94 million tons, up 99 percent. Those imports were worth of US$11.9 billion, 2.5 times more than the year before. |
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