CHONGQING, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality saw its foreign trade increase by 11.4 percent year on year to nearly 461.4 billion yuan (around 69.4 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three quarters of this year, customs data showed Wednesday.

Chongqing's exports reached 291 billion yuan during the period, a year-on-year increase of 10.3 percent, while imports achieved annual growth of 13.3 percent to about 170.4 billion yuan, according to Chongqing customs.

In September alone, Chongqing's foreign trade exceeded 63 billion yuan, up 18.9 percent year on year.

The Association of southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) remains Chongqing's largest trading partner. In the first three quarters, the city's trade with ASEAN reached 83.59 billion yuan, up 6 percent year on year, accounting for 18.1 percent of Chongqing's total.

Private enterprises enjoyed strong performance in foreign trade, with their imports and exports totaling 167.11 billion yuan, an annual increase of 27.2 percent. The volume accounted for 36.2 percent of Chongqing's total foreign trade in the same period.

In terms of exports, electronic and information products maintained a strong increase over the period, while imports of integrated circuit and consumer goods, such as fruits and medicines, posted strong growth.