China bought from abroad 7.57 million tons of chemical fertilizer in the first seven months of this year, a growth of 27.6 percent over the same period of last year, according to the General Administration of Customs.

The imports were valued at US$1.79 billion, up 37.9 percent, or at US$236.5 per ton on average, up 8.1 percent.

Of the total arrivals, 3.17 million tons came from Russia, up 10 percent, 1.5 million tons from Canada, up 240 percent, and 1.07million tons from Belarus, up 82.1 percent. All the three sources made up 75.7 percent of China's total chemical fertilizer imports.

Potassium chloride dominated the arrivals with a proportion of 77.1 percent. Its import volume stood at 5.84 million tons, up 81.3 percent.

(Xinhua News Agency October 6, 2007)