The busy Xiamen Port in Xiamen, in East China's Fujian province [Photo/xmnn.cn]

The value of foreign trade in the first seven months in Xiamen – the port city in East China's Fujian province – expanded to 370 billion yuan ($53.46 billion), up 5.4 percent year-on-year, according to local officials who said the growth rate was 7.1 percentage points higher than the national average.

Statistics showed that the city's exports were down by 4.8 percent year-on-year to 189.2 billion yuan in the period, but imports surged to 180.9 billion yuan, growing by 18.7 percent year-on-year.

Since the novel coronavirus epidemic, the Xiamen government has successfully rolled out a series of policies designed to stabilize foreign trade and investment, injecting renewed confidence.

New business forms such as online platforms and digital advertisements were promoted – and the local government also offered financial support to foreign trade enterprises, all of which have achieved positive progress in keeping their foreign trade stable, officials said.

They said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, was Xiamen's largest trade partner in the first seven months of the year, followed by the Unites States and the European Union.

The city saw robust growth in its foreign trade with ASEAN countries and regions during the period, with the value of trade rising by 13.3 percent year-on-year to 65.77 billion yuan.

According to Xiamen customs, mechanical and electrical goods, mineral ore and agricultural products were the primary import commodities, while labor-intensive products and mechanical and electrical products were the city's main exports.

The total foreign trade volume of State-owned enterprises in Xiamen rose 33.2 percent year-on-year to 125.14 billion yuan for the first seven months. Officials said that strong performance illustrated what State-owned business could do to stabilize foreign trade.