The Jinan government hosts a news conference on July 18 to report the city's foreign trade in the first half of the year. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The foreign trade volume of Jinan, capital of East China's Shandong province, rose 12 percent year-on-year to 50.6 billion yuan ($7.3 billion) in the first half of the year, local customs authorities said on July 18.

Official data showed that the city's total foreign trade maintained steady growth during the period. Specifically, it brought in imports worth 19.7 billion yuan, up 21.3 percent, while exports increased by 6.9 percent to 30.9 billion yuan.

Private companies remained a major driving force behind the city's foreign trade growth. The foreign trade value of the private sector amounted to 28.5 billion yuan, accounting for 56.4 percent of the city's total.

Jinan's iron ore imports surged 39.7 percent to 4.1 billion yuan, while imports of integrated circuits totaled 2.5 billion yuan, up 91.4 percent.

Exports of automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and machine tools saw rapid growth. In the first half of this year, the city exported 18.9 billion yuan worth of electromechanical products, up 9.4 percent, accounting for 61.3 percent of the city's total export value.

The city's trade with countries along the Belt and Road reached 19.4 billion yuan, an increase of 15.5 percent year-on-year and 3.5 percentage points faster than the city's overall foreign trade growth. BRI countries are becoming the new drivers behind the city's foreign trade.

Additionally, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has become the city's largest trading partner. In the first half of this year, Jinan's imports and exports to ASEAN countries reached 10.8 billion yuan, up 13.8 percent, accounting for 21.5 percent of the city's total imports and exports.