Statistics newly released by the General Administration of Customs show that in May alone, China's foreign trade totaled US$39.63 billion, a 6.9 percent increase over the same period of last year.

The past five months saw an 11 percent increase in China's exports, which totaled US$102.5 billion, a slowdown from last month's 13.2 percent. Analysts here attributed this slowdown to the overall decline in market demand.

Meanwhile, China's imports from January to May reached US$95.18 billion, 16.3 percent up year on year.

Two-way trade of overseas-invested enterprises in China totaled US$100.45 billion. In addition, overseas-invested enterprises imported US$5.9 billion worth of facilities as investment in China, Chinese Customs' statistics says.

While trade of China's state-owned enterprises increased at a lower rate of 5.4 percent to US$85.12 billion, two-way trade of collective-ownership and private enterprises was up by 63. 9 percent to US$12.12 billion.

China's exports to the United States and Japan totaled US$20.32 billion and US$17.95 billion respectively. Meanwhile, imports from these two major trade partners added up to US$10.1 billion and US$17.27 billion.

Machinery and electric products remained China's major export commodities, totaling US$5.24 billion and accounting for 44.1 percent of the country's total exports.

Major import commodities included refined oil, which totaled 8.9 million tons, industrial manufactured products, which added up to US$76.61 billion, electric products, US$21.7 billion and steel, 7.03 million tons.

(Xinhua 06/13/2001)