Imports fall 5.7% in July; exports rise

China should facilitate regional trade and expand global use of renminbi, expert says

China's exports rose by 2.9 percent year-on-year in July, while imports fell by 5.7 percent, leading to a monthly trade surplus of 342.8 billion yuan ($51.45 billion), figures released by the General Administration of Customs showed on Monday.

The country's foreign trade outlook for the whole year is not optimistic, due to higher operational costs, loss of production orders and jobs and growing trade friction, said Wang Dongtang, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Commerce's Department of Foreign Trade.