The total imports and exports of Shandong province in the first four months of this year reached 840.65 billion yuan ($130.72 billion), up 37.2 percent year-on-year, 8.7 percentage points higher than the overall growth rate of the country, according to data from local customs.

During the period, the province's exports hit 468.6 billion yuan, up 39.4 percent year-on-year, while its imports recorded 372.05 billion yuan, up 34.6 percent. Its import and export value accounted for 7.2 percent of the country's total, up 0.4 percentage points from the same period last year.

Customs officials in Qingdao, Shandong province, check a freight train bound for Azerbaijan. [Photo by Xie Hao/For China Daily]

The value of imports and exports of the province's 16 cities all posted double-digit growth.

In the first four months of this year, the import and export of Qingdao and Yantai were valued at 245.14 billion yuan and 128.16 billion yuan respectively - an increase of 30.1 percent and 60 percent respectively - and taking the top two spots in Shandong.

In addition, the import and export of Dongying, Linyi, Weihai, Dezhou and Tai'an grew at a faster rate of 74.3 percent, 69.5 percent, 49.4 percent, 46.1 percent and 42.5 percent respectively.

Private enterprises continue to dominate the province's foreign trade. In the first four months, the import and export of private enterprises in Shandong province reached 578.02 billion yuan, up 40.1 percent, accounting for 68.8 percent of the province's total.

Shandong's import and export to ASEAN reached 119.58 billion yuan, up by 49.7 percent. Its trade with Latin America reached 97.91 billion yuan, up 31.4 percent. Its trade with the United States hit 94.32 billion yuan, up 74 percent, while its trade with the EU (excluding the UK) reached 82.63 billion yuan, up 33 percent.

In addition, the province's trade with countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative totaled 268.48 billion yuan, up 37.4 percent.