CHINA

Foreign Trade Grows: China’s foreign trade grew by 17.5% in 1991 to $135.7 billion, with a trade surplus of $8.1 billion, published reports said. The state-run Xinhua News Agency said economists attributed the expanded trade to improvements in the domestic economy and reforms of the foreign trade system. Xinhua said China exported $71.9 billion worth of goods last year, a 15.8% increase from 1990. China had $63.8 billion in imports, a 19.5% increase, it added. However, the country’s trade figures for 1990 make for a low comparative base because China cut imports sharply that year as part of an austerity program.