Xinjiang's external trade up over 33% in January-April

Workers transfer containers from an inbound train to a domestic train at the Alashankou Port, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, in September 2020. [Photo by CAI ZENGLE/FOR CHINA DAILY]

Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region saw foreign trade of around 52 billion yuan (about $7.7 billion) in the first four months of this year, up 33.7 percent year-on-year, according to local customs.

From January to April, Xinjiang's exports reached 42.5 billion yuan, marking a year-on-year growth of 45.4 percent, according to Urumqi customs.

During this period, the region's foreign trade with countries along the Belt and Road topped 47.46 billion yuan, up 45.2 percent from the same period last year, while its trade with members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership rose 30.8 percent to 3.34 billion yuan.

Labor-intensive, mechanical and electrical products were Xinjiang's major exports, according to the customs.

Meanwhile, the import and export volume of the four integrated bonded areas, namely, Kashgar, Alashankou, Horgos and Urumqi surged by 130.2 percent year on year to 9.53 billion yuan, accounting for 18.3 percent of Xinjiang's total foreign trade in the four months.