BEIJING, March 22 (Xinhua) -- China's cultural trade registered steady and fast expansion last year, with the aggregate trade volume of cultural products up 8.9 percent year on year, official data showed.
The total export and import volume of cultural products reached 111.45 billion U.S. dollars, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
In breakdown, exports of cultural products went up 7.9 percent to 99.89 billion dollars, while the imports stood at 11.57 billion dollars, 17.4 percent higher from the previous year.
The cultural trade surplus expanded by 6.8 percent to 88.32 billion dollars, the data showed.
Exports of cultural goods, arts, crafts and collectibles as well as publications grew rapidly, increasing by 11.7 percent, 5.6 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively.