Yantai in East China's Shandong province has been included in a list of the top 100 cities for foreign trade in China for the eighth consecutive year by the influential China Customs magazine, the mouthpiece of China's General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The coastal city ranked 25th on the list of the top Chinese cities for foreign trade in 2016, the second highest of any city in Shandong.

Based on GAC statistics, the list evaluated cities' competitiveness as a trade destination using five indicators: quality, structure, performance, development and potential.

In the first half of 2017, Yantai's import and export volume reached 142 billion yuan ($21 billion), accounting for just over 16 percent of the total volume in Shandong province.

An international shipping line from Yantai to the Middle East was inaugurated on March 3. [Photo/China Daily]