Shanghai's foreign trade expands 14.6 percent in Q1

Aerial photo taken on April 15, 2022 shows a view of Shanghai's Yangshan Port in east China. (Xinhua/Ding Ting)

SHANGHAI, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Foreign trade in east China's Shanghai Municipality hit 1.01 trillion yuan (about 158 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter of 2022, according to Shanghai customs.

The figure represents a 14.6 percent increase from the same period of last year, it added.

Of the total trade volume, exports rose 23.8 percent year on year to 413.5 billion yuan, while imports expanded by 8.9 percent to 594.4 billion yuan.

Mechanical and electrical products accounted for 68.7 percent of the city's exports in Q1, while exports of automobiles, mobile phones, lithium-ion batteries and labor-intensive products registered growth. High-tech products were Shanghai's main imported products during the period.

The city's largest trade partner in the first quarter was the European Union, with a total trade volume of 196.2 billion yuan.