BEIJING, July 13 (Xinhua) -- China's foreign trade rose 27.1 percent year on year to 18.07 trillion yuan (about 2.79 trillion U.S. dollars) in the first half of the year, the best performance in history, official data showed Tuesday.
The growth marks an increase of 22.8 percent from the pre-epidemic level in 2019, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said.
Exports jumped 28.1 percent from a year earlier, while imports climbed 25.9 percent in yuan terms.
In June alone, the country's imports and exports went up 22 percent year on year to 3.29 trillion yuan, marking an increase for the 13th month in a row.
China's trade with its top three trading partners - the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the European Union, and the United States - maintained sound growth in the first half of the year, said GAC spokesperson Li Kuiwen.
During the period, the growth rates of China's trade value with the three trading partners stood at 27.8 percent, 26.7 percent and 34.6 percent, respectively.
China's trade with countries along the Belt and Road rose 27.5 percent year on year to stand at 5.35 trillion yuan, while trade with countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership grew 22.7 percent year on year, GAC data showed.
China's cross-border e-commerce also maintained steady expansion in the first six months, with the total trade value growing 28.6 percent year on year to reach 886.7 billion yuan, the data showed.
For the second half of the year, China's foreign trade growth may slow down due to a high base last year, said Li, adding that the foreign trade for the whole year is still expected to maintain rapid growth.
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