Beijing recorded US$113.3 billion in the volume of its trade with foreign countries in the first 11 months of last year, representing a year-on-year growth of 34 percent, local commerce authorities said.

The total trade volume included US$27.73 billion in exports, up 52 percent over the same period of the previous year.

The capital city's foreign trade is expected to reach US$120 billion for the whole year of 2005, including US$30 billion in exports and US$90 billion in imports.

It is noteworthy that exports of software kept increasing in Beijing.

According to the commerce authorities, Beijing sold abroad US$246 million worth of software from January to November last year, up 40.5 percent from the same period of the previous year.

In 2004, the city's software export stood at US$230 million, 37.1 percent of China's total, ranking first across the country. The export volume was 5.1 times the 2000 level, with an average annual growth rate of 50.1 percent for the 2000-2004 period.

(Xinhua News Agency January 6, 2006)