"The figure for the whole year is expected to show a rise of 15 percent from the previous year's," GAC announced yesterday. A surge in machinery and electronics exports, accompanied by continued growth in exports of high-tech products edged up China's foreign trade, the report said.

According to GAC, exports of machinery and electronic equipment were 27.2 percent higher for the first eight months of this year compared with last year's figures for the period, accounting for 47.5 percent of the country's total. At the same time, exports of high-tech products registered a growth of more than 40 percent over figures for the same period of last year.

"If there are no upsets in the next few months, exports for this year should be more than 10 percent higher than for last year," said Li Yushi, deputy director of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Co-operation under the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation.

Government measures such as export tax rebates, improved government services, reform of administrative approval systems and creation of a sound legal environment are all conducive to stimulating the country's exports, he said.

Exports in August surged 25 percent year-on-year, weaker than the hot 28.1 percent jump posted in July.

Exports from January to August rose 18 percent from figures for the same period a year earlier to US$200.7 billion.

Analysts also believe that China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) last December has put Chinese products on an equal footing in the international market.

In another development, due to the continuing worries about the security of the world's economy following the September 11 terrorist attacks last year, China's stable political and economic situation has attracted more and more transnational companies to shift their manufacturing bases and procurement to this country.

(China Daily September 25, 2002)