This aerial photo taken on July 11, 2023 shows new energy vehicles for export at a terminal of Taicang Port in east China's Jiangsu province. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - China's total goods imports and exports expanded 0.2 percent year-on-year in yuan terms in 2023, official data showed Friday.

In 2023, the country's foreign trade stood at 41.76 trillion yuan ($5.87 trillion), according to the General Administration of Customs.

Exports grew 0.6 percent year-on-year to 23.77 trillion yuan, while imports edged down 0.3 percent from one year earlier to 17.99 trillion yuan, the data showed.

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The data have demonstrated that China's export products still hold solid competitive advantages, GAC deputy head Wang Lingjun told a press conference.

The total export value of the technology-intensive green trio, namely solar batteries, lithium-ion batteries, and electric vehicles, surged 29.9 percent to 1.06 trillion yuan in 2023. It marks the first time that the figure topped the one-trillion-yuan mark.

The export value of machinery and electronic products, accounting for 58.6 percent of total exports, increased 2.9 percent during the period, while that of ships hiked 35.4 percent from a year earlier.

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Wang also noted an increase in the share of trade with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative in total foreign trade. Last year, China's trade with these countries accounted for 46.6 percent of the total, up 1.2 percentage points from 2022.