January 11, 2003	Saturday	Ziqa'ad 7, 1423

BEIJING, Jan 10: China’s trade volume rose by a fifth in 2002 compared with the previous year, with exports increasing 22.3 per cent, state media said on Friday, citing official statistics.

Imports and exports increased by a fifth to $620.79 billion last year, China Daily said, quoting customs statistics.

Exports rose to $325.57 billion and imports grew 21.2 per cent to $295.22bn, bringing China’s trade surplus to $30.35 billion.

Processing trade increased 25.2 per cent year-on-year to $302.17bn, making up 48.8pc of China’s total foreign trade.

Machinery and electronic products led the growth in exports while exports of traditional labour-intensive products also bounced back, the report cited customs statistics as showing.—AFP