Taiyuan Customs announced that the total import and export value of Shanxi province in 2015 was 91.4 billion yuan ($13.90 billion), ranking 24th nationwide, sxgov.cn has reported.

Shanxi's processing trade reached 54.08 billion yuan, or 59.2 percent of total foreign trade last year. The figure increased by eight percent, compared to the province's negative 8.4 percent total trade growth. Export in the processing sector reached 33.1 percent yuan, a slight rise of one percent, while import surged 21.2 percent to 20.97 billion yuan. In contrast, general trade, accounting for 40 percent of total imports and exports, was 36.52 billion yuan, a plunge of 23.8 percent.

The European Union, the United States, and BRICS countries are major trade partners among the 175 countries and regions conducting foreign trade with Shanxi last year. Trade to the EU was 15.86 billion yuan, to the US 12.94 billion yuan, to the BRICS 9.52 billion yuan, and to the ASEAN countries 7.08 billion yuan.

Foreign-funded companies were involved in 47.39 billion yuan of foreign trade, 51.8 percent of the total, an increase of 11.6 percent. Their exports reached 27.55 billion yuan, up by 6.9 percent, and their imports were at 19.84 billion yuan, a rise of 18.8 percent.

In addition, the province saw 33.23 billion yuan of mechanical and electrical products exported in 2015, a 5.8 percent growth. High-tech product exports rose 6.8 percent to 24.69 billion yuan. Import and export volumes of chemical products, a traditional export of Shanxi, showed a small rise of 1.3 percent to 3.82 billion yuan.

The province's customs authority said it will implement government policies and measures that stabilize foreign trade to help companies reduce costs and curb the slowdown of the sector.