Abstract : The import and export volume of central China's Hunan Province with the Belt and Road (B&R) markets surged 39 percent year-on-year in 2018, data from Department of Commerce of Hunan Province showed.

BEIJING, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- The import and export volume of central China's Hunan Province with the Belt and Road (B&R) markets surged 39 percent year-on-year in 2018, data from Department of Commerce of Hunan Province showed.

It is noted that the total import and export value of the province has exceeded 310 billion yuan (about 45.8 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, up 28 percent year-on-year.

The growth can be attributed to an expansion in the number of foreign trade entities and the favorable environment for foreign trade.

Statistics show that a total of 4,630 enterprises in Hunan engaged in the foreign trade in 2018, with year-on-year growth of 16.8 percent, said Xu Xiangping, director of the Department of Commerce.

Mechanical and electrical as well as high-tech products were the major import and export products in Hunan, accounting for 48.8 percent of the total foreign trade volume in 2018 as many leading manufacturers set up factories here, such as Foxconn, said Luo Shuangfeng, deputy director of the department. (Edited by Jiang Feifan)