BEIJING — China’s imports of services climbed 8.9 percent year-on-year to 2.61 trillion yuan (about $378 billion) in the first nine months of the year, data showed on Nov 6.

Service exports rose 14 percent to 1.27 trillion yuan during the period, leading to a trade deficit of more than 1.33 trillion yuan, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce.

Foreign trade in emerging services, which accounts for 33 percent of the domestic total, increased 20.1 percent to 1.28 trillion yuan for January-September.

The ministry said economic transformation has boosted the imports of high-end producer services, with imports of financial services and charges for the use of intellectual property up 22.1 percent and 24 percent, respectively, during the January-September period.

The country’s cumulative service imports are expected to exceed $2.5 trillion in the next five years, according to a report released by the ministry.

China’s service imports will account for more than 10 percent of global service imports, contributing over 20 percent to total global growth in the coming five years.