BEIJING — China saw its foreign trade rise 5.1 percent year-on-year in June, with exports and imports up 4.3 percent and 6.2 percent respectively, official data showed on July 14.

The country registered better-than-expected foreign trade performance in the first half of the year, said Li Kuiwen, spokesman of the General Administration of Customs (GAC) at a news conference.

Foreign trade of goods went down 3.2 percent year on year in the first half to 14.24 trillion yuan (about $2 trillion), narrowing by 1.7 percentage points compared with the decrease for the first five months.

Following the turbulence in the first quarter, imports and exports of the second quarter showed signs of recovery and stability, and the exports have risen for three consecutive months, Li said.

During the January-June period, ASEAN remained China's largest trading partner with trade up 5.6 percent year-on-year to 2.09 trillion yuan, accounting for 14.7 percent of China's total foreign trade.

Trade with the European Union and the United States decreased 1.8 percent and 6.6 percent, respectively, during the period, GAC data showed.

Combined trade with countries along the Belt and Road saw a slight decline of 0.9 percent year-on-year to 4.2 trillion yuan in H1, 2.3 percentage points lower than the country's overall decrease in foreign trade.

Exports of epidemic prevention supplies grew rapidly with sales of medicines and pharmaceutical products, and medical equipment expanding by 23.6 percent and 46.4 percent, respectively.

Noting that China's exports and imports continue to face a grim and complicated situation in the second half of this year, Li said the country's foreign trade is resilient and has more leeway. He assured that more efforts will be made to ensure stable and high-quality foreign trade.