SHANGHAI ports reported US$378.17 billion in foreign trade in the first three quarters of this year, a growth of 20.9 percent on the same period last year, local customs sources said at the weekend.
The total included US$238.5 billion in export value, up 22.8 percent, and US$139.68 billion in import value, up 17.8 percent.
The sources said imports reached a record high at US$17.63 billion in September, up 15 percent year on year.
Between January and September, the European Union and South Korea were Shanghai's major trade partners.
Bilateral trade between Shanghai and European Union ports amounted to US$81.88 billion, or 21.7 percent of Shanghai's total external trade volume, in the nine months, up 30.2 percent. The growth rate was 9.3 percentage points higher than the year-earlier level.
Exports from Shanghai ports to the EU stood at US$55.47 billion, up 32.4 percent, and imports from the EU were at US$26.4 billion dollars, up 25.9 percent.
From January to September, the ports imported US$14.78 billion worth of goods from South Korea, up 15.2 percent. The growth rate was 10 percentage points higher than the year earlier.