Tianjin, an industrial center for northern China, will likely realize 33 billion U.S. dollars in export volume this year, a growth of 20.4 percent over last year.

According to local customs sources, Tianjin chalked up 58.2 billion U.S. dollars in foreign trade over the first 11 months of this year, up 22.1 percent from the year-earlier level.

The total included 30.1 billion U.S. dollars in export value, up 23 percent, and 28 billion U.S. dollars in import value, up 21.2 percent.

The sources said foreign-funded businesses accounted for 80 percent of the city's total export for the Jan.-Nov. period, 300 percentage points higher than the 2000 level.

Machines and electronics made up 68.8 percent of the total foreign sales, up from 48.8 percent in 2000, and the share of new- and high-tech products in the total export increased from 24.7 percent to 45 percent, the sources added.

Source: Xinhua