ISTANBUL: China's foreign trade reached a new high of $3.5 trillion, up 6.2% year-on-year, in Jan. - July, Beijing-based news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday, citing official data. China's exports surged 6.7% year-on-year to $2.01 trillion and imports climbed 5.4% to $1.49 trillion in the same period, the news report revealed. Meanwhile, China's trade surplus soared 7.9% year-on-year to $518 billion in the first seven months of the year. The report showed that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was China's biggest trading partner, as the bilateral trade volume surged 10.5% on an annual basis to $545.8 billion, making up 15.8% of China's foreign trade. China's mechanical and electrical exports accounted for approximately 60% of all the country's exports. 'Exports of automatic data processing equipment and components rose 11.6% year on year in the first seven months, integrated circuits increased by 25.8%, and automobiles by 20.7%,' the news report by Xinhua stated. Source: Anadolu Ag ency