BEIJING, April 18 (Xinhua) -- China's imports of major commodities including iron ore and crude oil saw relatively fast growth in the first quarter of the year (Q1), data from the General Administration of Customs showed.

The country's imports of crude oil climbed 5 percent year on year to 130 million tonnes during the period.

A total of 24.66 million tonnes of natural gas were imported during the period, up 1.8 percent from one year earlier. Imports of coal surged 28.4 percent to 95.78 million tonnes.

Iron ore imports during the January-March period went up 1.3 percent to 260 million tonnes. Soybean imports gained 6.2 percent year on year to 17.79 million tonnes.

Customs data showed China's foreign trade of goods fell 6.4 percent year on year to 6.57 trillion yuan in Q1.