China foreign trade growth rebounds in May

China's foreign trade growth trumped market forecasts to post double-digit rates in May, boosted by slightly-improved external markets and more working days in the month. China's foreign trade rose 14.1 percent year on year to 343.58 billion U.S. dollars in May, rebounding from the 2.7-percent growth registered in April, data with the General Administration of Customs (GAC) showed Sunday. The figure replaced the monthly trade record set in November 2011, when foreign trade amounted to 334.11 billion U.S. dollars, the GAC was quoted by the New China News Agency (Xinhua) as saying. Both imports and exports reached record highs in May, with exports climbing 15.3 percent from a year earlier to 181.14 billion U.S. dollars, and imports rising 12.7 percent to 162.44 billion U.S. dollars. In May, the trade surplus hit 18.7 billion U.S. dollars, slightly higher than the 18.42 billion U.S. dollars seen in April. The better-than-expected data showed China's foreign trade has stepped out of its previous low times, said Huo Jianguo, director of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce.(QNA)