Xinjiang's foreign trade growth dips

Foreign trade growth in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has been slipping since June, according to statistics released by customs authorities in the regional capital of Urumqi. The region's import-export volume totaled 12.53 billion U.S. dollars from January to July, up just 2.2 percent year on year. Exports during the period amounted to 10.94 billion U.S. dollars, up 16.2 percent, while imports were 1.59 billion U.S. dollars, 43.9 percentage points less than a year earlier. The global economic slowdown and the appreciation of the yuan have been blamed for the weak growth. Xinjiang has also seen a slowdown in its bilateral trade with Russia. Bilateral trade volume in the first seven months amounted to only 261 million U.S. dollars, down 37.2 percent compared to the same period last year. Private enterprises are continuing to play a key role in regional economic vitality. The foreign trade volume of private enterprises hit 9.8 billion U.S. dollars for the first seven months of the year, a 13.4-percent increase compared to a year earlier. The enterprises' foreign trade volume also accounted for 78.2 percent of the region's total foreign trade volume during the same period, up 7.7 percent year on year.