PINGXIANG customs checkpoint, on the Sino-Vietnamese border, recorded a trade value of over US$1 billion from January to April this year, thanks to the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, Xinhua reported.

The checkpoint handled 982,000 tonnes of trade cargo during this period, up 15.5 per cent year on year. Value jumped 52 per cent to $1.06 billion. Imports soared 59 per cent to 418,000 tonnes as value rose 35 per cent to $94.7 million. Exports came to 564,000 tonnes with value rising 53.9 per cent to $960 million.

In January, the first month of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, Pingxiang checkpoint recorded a sharp year-on-year increase of 183 per cent in the trade value.