Two customs officials from Huzhou, East China's Zhejiang province examine containers stocked with foreign trade goods. [Photo/hz66.com] 

Huzhou's imports and exports from January to September amounted to 111.98 billion yuan ($17.22 billion), up 38 percent year-on-year, according to Huzhou Customs.

The growth rate was the third highest in East China's Zhejiang province in this period.

Specifically, the city's exports rose 39.3 percent to 101.8 billion yuan, accounting for 4.7 percent of Zhejiang's total, with the growth rate being the highest in Zhejiang.

Meanwhile, its imports were valued at 10.18 billion yuan in the first nine months of this year, a jump of 26.1 percent year-on-year.

In September, Huzhou's foreign trade volume totaled 12.1 billion yuan, a 23.3 percent year-on-year increase, the fifth highest among cities in Zhejiang.

Exports registered the highest growth rate of 18.6 percent to reach 10.56 billion yuan in the month, while imports increased by 68.2 percent year-on-year to 1.55 billion yuan. 

Huzhou has seen positive growth in its exports for 18 consecutive months since April last year.