China's total volume of foreign trade is expected to exceed
US$2.1 trillion, up 20 percent over last year, according to a
report issued by the Ministry of Commerce during the ongoing 102nd
China Import and Export Commodities Fair.
The export volume will reach US$1.2 trillion and the import
volume will be US$950 billion, with a trade surplus of US$250
billion.
"Continued global economic growth and the robust demand of the
international market have contributed to China's increasing foreign
trade," said Liu Haiquan, the Deputy Director of the General
Department with the ministry.
The ever increasing amount of foreign direct investment (FDI)
has also played an important role, said the official, citing
China's actual FDI, which rose 10.9 percent year-on-year to US$47.2
billion in the first three quarters.
"China will continuously endeavor to improve its trade pattern
to prevent the surplus from growing too fast," said Li Yushi, vice
president of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and
Economic Cooperation under the commerce ministry.
"China never seeks a huge trade surplus," Wang Xinpei, the
spokesman of the ministry said earlier this week.
Also according to the report, China's trade volume would top
US$2.4 trillion in 2008, up by around 15 percent.
In the first nine months, exports rose 27.1 percent year-on-year
to US$878.2 billion, while imports were up 19.1 percent to US$692.6
billion, according to statistics from the General Administration of
Customs.
The fair, commonly known as the Canton Fair, started on October
15 in south China's Guangdong Province and will last until October
30.
(Xinhua News Agency October 29, 2007)
