China's northernmost province sees robust trade growth

HARBIN, April 23 (Xinhua) -- Heilongjiang, China's northernmost province, saw its foreign trade in goods grow by 29.5 percent year on year to 55.2 billion yuan (about 8.5 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter of this year, customs data showed.

From January to March, Heilongjiang's imports saw a 33.7 percent increase to 45.1 billion yuan, while its exports grew by 13.5 percent to 10.1 billion yuan, according to the Harbin customs in the provincial capital.

Its trade with countries along the Belt and Road hit 43.7 billion yuan, accounting for 79.2 percent of the province's total foreign trade. Trade with members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership rose 49.2 percent.

The province saw robust growth in the exports of labor-intensive products and agricultural products, while imports of meat and iron ore surged in the same period.