China-Africa trade up 45% in 2008 to $107 bln

Trade between China and Africa reached a record 106.84 billion U.S. dollars in 2008, up 45.1 percent from a year earlier, customs figures showed Wednesday.

Exports to Africa reached 50.84 billion U.S. dollars, up 36.3 percent. Imports from Africa hit 56 billion U.S. dollars, up 54 percent.

China had a trade deficit of 5.16 billion U.S. dollars with Africa in 2008, compared with a surplus of 940 million U.S. dollars in 2007.

The number of African countries with which China had more than 1 billion U.S. dollars in trade increased to 20 in 2008 from 14 in2007.

Angola remained China's largest trading partner in Africa and South Africa came the second.

Source: Xinhua