China's Hebei sees rapid growth in foreign trade in Jan.-Feb.

SHIJIAZHUANG, March 22 (Xinhua) -- North China's Hebei Province saw its foreign trade grow 8.1 percent year on year to 86.67 billion yuan (about 12.6 billion U.S. dollars) in the first two months of 2023, according to local customs.

Its exports totaled 48.44 billion yuan, up 3.6 percent year on year, while imports hit 38.23 billion yuan, up 14.4 percent, data from Shijiazhuang Customs shows.

The United States was Hebei's largest trade partner in the two months, with the volume of imports and exports growing 6 percent year on year to 11.53 billion yuan.

In the period, the province's foreign trade with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations grew by 17.6 percent to 9.79 billion yuan, while its foreign trade with the European Union increased by 5.1 percent to 9.06 billion yuan.

Hebei's exports of mechanical and electrical products, steel and agricultural products maintained growth from January to February, and it saw increased imports of soybeans, iron ore and iron concentrate.