Guangdong Customs statistics released on Wednesday have revealed that Guangdong's export volume from private companies and foreign-funded firms registered strong growth in the first six months of this year.

Export volume from private companies reached US$7.78 billion between January and June, up 87.5 percent compared with the same period in 2003, while exports from foreign-funded firms rose by 29.1 percent, totalling US$51.95 billion.

Demonstrating the major role played by foreign capital in the provincial economy, foreign-funded firms' exports now account for 62.7 percent of the Guangdong's total.

But the province's State-owned enterprises exported a total of US$19.72 billion of products, up just year-on-year 4.6 percent, 23.8 percent of the province's total.

Provincial customs official Wu Sihai said the non-State sectors' good export performance had helped the southern province reach a total import and export volume of US$159.29 billion in the first half of this year, a year-on-year rise of 28 percent.

Guangdong's foreign trade volume represented 30.5 percent of the national total in the first six months of this year.

The province's export volume stood at US$82.87 billion, while imports were US$76.42 billion, year-on-year rises of 26 percent and 30.2 percent.

Guangdong's exports to Hong Kong, the United States, the European Union (EU), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), South Korea and the Middle East all enjoyed increases of at least 20 percent during the first six months of 2004.

Wu revealed that Guangdong, the province that has conducted the greatest amount of foreign trade for the past two decades, met 51.6 percent of its annual export target by the end of June.

And it notched up a US$6.45 billion foreign trade surplus in the January-June period.

But factors including worsening trade conflicts may prevent the fast growth of the province's exports in the second half of this year, Wu warned.

Guangdong had planned to reach an export volume of more than US$165 billion this year.

Guangdong's prawn exports could drop rapidly after the United States imposed anti-dumping taxes on Chinese prawns.

Guangdong is the nation's biggest prawn producer, with its annual prawn exports making up more than 50 percent of the national total.

Government departments has urged local prawn breeders to try to increase their sales to South Korea, Japan and other neighboring nations and regions.

Affected by trade protectionism, Guangdong's exports of garments and genuine leather products to the EU have witnessed a drop of more than 20 percent in the first five months this year, Wu said.

Guangdong's exports may also suffer from global price rises in crude oil, coal and other energy resources.

(China Daily July 15, 2004)