Oct. performance boosts hopes of economic recovery (3)

In the first 10 months, the country's foreign trade volume expanded 6.3 percent from the same period of last year to US$3.16 trillion, with a trade surplus of US$180.2 billion.

In September, the State Council, China's Cabinet, announced a slew of policies, including more timely payment of export tax rebates, more credit insurance, less fees and better Customs services to bolster trade.

Analysts believe these measures may help sustain trade growth in the near term.

In the first 10 months of this year, the European Union remained China's biggest trading partner, with a trade volume of US$452.8 billion.

During the same period, China's bilateral trade with the US jumped 9.1 percent to US$396 billion, while trade with Japan fell 2.1 percent to US$275.4 billion.

Shanghai's trade rose 0.5 percent on an annual basis to US$362.9 billion in the first 10 months on 2012, placing the city third in value after the southern Guangdong Province and neighboring Jiangsu Province.

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