China's January exports up 25%, imports up 28.8%

BEIJING - China's foreign trade continued to rebound strongly in January due to more working days last month and a stabilized economic situation, customs data showed Friday.

China's foreign trade surged 26.7 percent year on year to 2.17 trillion yuan ($345.59 billion) in January, according to data from the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The rise was bigger than the 10.2-percent growth seen in December.

Exports increased 25 percent from one year earlier in January, the fastest pace since April 2011 and up from December's 14.1-percent rise. Imports rose 28.8 percent, a jump from the 6-percent pace from December.

In January, the foreign trade surplus widened 7.7 percent to 183.21 billion yuan, data showed.

"A lower comparative base last year caused by fewer working days has helped push up the growth rate this year," said Li Jian, a foreign trade expert from a research institute at the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

There were 22 working days in January, 5 days more than last year when the seven-day Spring Festival holiday fell in the first month.

After adjustments to seasonal factors, January data remained bullish, with foreign trade up 8.1 percent year on year, exports up 12.4 percent and imports up 3.4 percent.