China's foreign trade up 27.1 pct in H1

Aerial photo taken on Feb. 22, 2021 shows a container terminal of Tianjin Port in north China's Tianjin Municipality. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)

BEIJING, July 13 (Xinhua) -- China's total imports and exports expanded 27.1 percent year on year to 18.07 trillion yuan (about 2.79 trillion U.S. dollars) in the first half of 2021, official data showed Tuesday.

This marks an increase of 22.8 percent from the pre-epidemic level in 2019, the General Administration of Customs said.

Exports jumped 28.1 percent from a year earlier, while imports climbed 25.9 percent in yuan terms.

In June alone, the country's imports and exports went up 22 percent year on year to stand at 3.29 trillion yuan, marking an increase for the 13th month in a row.