China's exports to remain flat, imports to fall this year

Containers pile up at Waigaoqiao Port in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING -- Exports this year are expected to remain generally flat while imports may fall substantially, according to a Ministry of Commerce report released Thursday.

Foreign-trade growth fared well with a smaller drop than the global average and most major economies, the report pointed said.

For the first three quarters, foreign trade dropped 7.9 percent year-on-year to 17.87 trillion yuan ($2.82 trillion), with exports down 1.8 percent to 10.24 trillion yuan and imports down 15.1 percent to 7.63 trillion yuan. The trade surplus surged by 82.1 percent to 2.61 trillion yuan.

The report said the drops were due to the sluggish global economy, high costs and slumping commodity prices, citing data from the World Trade Organization that showed global exports dropped 10.9 percent year-on-year in the first seven months.

China will face complex global conditions, subdued international market demands, a weakening of its traditional competitive edge and increasing trade frictions in 2016, according to the report.

However, China is likely to post faster growth than the global average and hold a bigger share of the international market thanks to opening-up policies such as the Belt and Road Initiative and economic restructuring, according to the report.