China will combine expanding import with stabilizing export in a bid to achieve a balanced growth in trade, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Friday at the 110th Canton Fair held in the southern city of Guangzhou.

"China follows an open trade policy, emphasizing both export and import and refraining from pure trade surplus," Wen said at the opening ceremony of the 110th China Import and Export Fair.

Thanks to the efforts over the years, China's import and export have been moving towards greater balance. "China's trade surplus in 2009 went down by 100 billion U.S. dollars compared with the previous year. It further went down by 12.6 billion U.S. dollars in 2010," Wen said.

In 2011, the trade surplus is estimated at 170 billion U.S. dollars, almost the same as in 2010, according to a prediction by the imports and exports monitoring and warning system of the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The GAC also predicted that China's import is expected to reach 1,690 billion U.S. dollars in 2011, up 21 percent year on year, with the value of China's foreign trade exceeding 3,500 billion U.S. dollars this year, up about 19 percent year on year.

Growing imports heralds bountiful business opportunities. "China's total import in the next five years will hit 8 trillion U.S. dollars, which will offer a lot more opportunities for business around the world," Wen said.

For those countries who have substantial trade deficit with China, China is ready to strengthen financial and economic cooperation with them and resolve the issues of trade imbalance gradually in the course of continued development of trade, Wen said.

Premier Wen also called on relevant countries to recognize China's market economy status and relax their control on high- and new-tech exports to China so as to create conditions for a more balanced trade growth.

The fair is held biannually in Guangzhou every spring and autumn, with a history of 55 years since 1957.