China's foreign trade surged by 23.2 percent year on year to reach US$522.78 billion in the first five months, the latest customs statistics show.

Figures from China Customs show that the trade volume included US$276.4 billion in exports and US$246.38 billion in imports, respectively up 33.2 percent and 13.7 percent over the same period last year.

General trade registered US$225.48 billion in the first five months with a year-on-year rise of 21.1 percent. The exports in general trade rose 37.8 percent to US$117.48 billion and imports 7 percent to US$108 billion.

The processing trade reported a rise of 26.3 percent in the period to US$248.21 billion, including US$148.84 billion in exports and US$99.37 billion in imports, up 29.4 percent and 22 percent, respectively.

Customs statistics show that two-way trade between China and the European Union, the United States and Japan, China's top three trade partners, registered big rise.

The EU remained China's largest trade partner in the first five months with a trade volume of US$81.84 billion, up 24.2 percent.

The Sino-US trade volume rose 24.6 percent year on year to US$77.7 billion in the first five months.

The trade volume between China and Japan reached US$70.72 billion, up 10.1 percent year on year.

ASEAN, or Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has become China's fourth largest trade partner with the trade volume at US$48.56 billion, a rise of 25.8 percent year on year.

Guangdong, Jiangsu and Shanghai remain the leading places in foreign trade. Guangdong Province registered a trade volume of US$150.58 billion, up 16 percent year on year and making up 28.8 percent of the country's total. Jiangsu and Shanghai reported foreign trade at US$84.37 billion and US$71.44 billion in the first five months, a year-on-year growth of 37.5 percent and 16 percent, respectively.

(Xinhua News Agency June 11, 2005)