Yunnan sees foreign trade rise 16.4 pct in Jan.-Sept.

Aerial photo taken on Dec. 4, 2021 shows an international freight train bound for Laos at the border town of Mohan in southwest China's Yunnan Province. (Xinhua/Jiang Wenyao)

KUNMING, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Yunnan Province reported robust foreign trade growth in the first three quarters of 2022, according to the local customs authority.

The province's total import and export value from January to September hit 260.91 billion yuan (about 35.96 billion U.S. dollars), up 16.4 percent year on year.

Exports rose 11.4 percent year on year to 131.38 billion yuan, and imports increased 21.8 percent to 129.53 billion yuan, data from Kunming customs shows.

Trade between Yunnan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations totaled 96.65 billion yuan, accounting for 37 percent of the province's total import and export value. It has maintained double-digit growth for five consecutive months since May.

During the January-September period, the province's exports of labor-intensive products increased 48.4 percent year on year, and imports of energy products including crude oil, natural gas and coal surged 58.7 percent.