China's foreign trade up 0.03% year-on-year in first 10 months

China's total import and export of goods expanded 0.03 percent year on year to 34.32 trillion yuan (about .78 trillion) in the first ten months of the year, official data showed Tuesday.

Exports grew 0.4 percent year on year to 19.55 trillion yuan for the January-October period, while imports declined 0.5 percent from a year earlier to 14.77 trillion yuan, according to China's General Administration of Customs.

In October alone, the country's foreign trade rose 0.9 percent from a year earlier to 3.54 trillion yuan, the data showed.

The country's exports shrank 3.1 percent year on year last month, while imports increased by 6.4 percent.

In the first ten months of 2023, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) remained China's largest trade partner. China's trade with ASEAN countries rose 0.9 percent year on year to 5.23 trillion yuan, accounting for 15.2 percent of the country's total trade value.

China's trade with the European Union eased 1.6 percent from a year earlier, while its trade with the United States declined 7.6 percent year on year during the January-October period. Its trade with countries along the Belt and Road rose 3.2 percent year on year.

A breakdown of the data showed China's exports of machinery and electronic products, accounting for 58.5 percent of total exports, increased 2.8 percent during the period, and the export value of automobiles surged 88.5 percent from a year earlier.