TIANJIN — China's Tianjin municipality saw robust foreign trade growth from January to February, according to the municipal commission of commerce.

Its foreign trade grew 21.1 percent year-on-year to 120.3 billion yuan (about $18.5 billion) in the first two months of 2021, said the commission on March 18.

The growth was mainly driven by exports, which grew 45.7 percent year-on-year to 52.1 billion yuan, while imports edged up by 7.3 percent to 68.3 billion yuan.

Private enterprises have become a major driver for trade growth. Their foreign trade rose at a faster pace of 39.5 percent year-on-year to 43.5 billion yuan, accounting for 36.2 percent of the city's total trade volume in the two-month period.

The imports and exports of the city's foreign-funded enterprises reached 64.9 billion yuan, up 13.6 percent year-on-year, while the foreign trade of State-owned enterprises reached 11.7 billion yuan, up 9 percent.

Tianjin saw rapid export growth in labor-intensive products and mechanical and electrical products.

The commission vowed to explore new business models for foreign trade by further embracing the digital economy, optimize the structure of import and export products, and expand imports of new trade products to add impetus to the city's economic growth.