China's General Administration of Customs released June trade statistics on the 14th, showing exports rose 27% from a year earlier to 412.39 billion dollars, marking the eighth straight month of increase. The growth accelerated sharply from 19.4% in May and far exceeded the market forecast of an 18.2% rise. Imports grew 36% to 286.76 billion dollars, the 13th consecutive month of expansion, and the trade surplus widened to 125.6 billion dollars from 105.4 billion dollars in May. By country and region, exports to the United States increased 13.9%, and exports to Japan rose 6.9%. In the first half of the year, exports were up 17.6% from the same period a year earlier, while imports climbed 26.6%.