Beijing, Jan 12 (IANS): Chinese foreign trade rose 14.2 percent in 2017, helped by an increase of 18.7 percent in imports, putting an end to two consecutive years of declines, the General Administration of Customs reported on Friday.
The Asian giant's total foreign trade volume reached 27.79 trillion yuan ($4.28 trillion), Efe news reported.
The Chinese trade surplus stood at 2.87 trillion yuan with a decline of 14.2 per cent compared to 2016, according to Customs data which are always reported in yuan.
China's imports last year totalled 12.46 trillion yuan, 18.7 per cent more than in 2016.
Exports of goods and services of Chinese companies increased by 10.8 percent compared to the previous year reaching 15.33 trillion yuan.
In 2016, Chinese exports had declined by 1.9 percent and imports had risen by 0.6 percent.