CHANGSHA, Jan. 16 -- Central China's Hunan Province registered robust foreign trade growth in 2022, with an annual increase of 20.2 percent, local customs authorities said.

The province's import and export value surpassed 705.8 billion yuan (about 105 billion U.S. dollars) last year, Changsha Customs revealed at a media briefing on Monday.

Of the total, Hunan's exports reached nearly 515.5 billion yuan in 2022, an annual increase of 25.3 percent, while its imports hit nearly 190.4 billion yuan, up 8.3 percent year on year.

By 2022, Hunan had established economic and trade exchanges with 227 countries and regions, with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the United States and the European Union as the province's top three trading partners.

Hunan saw its import and export trade with countries along the Belt and Road and other members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) increase by 46.4 percent and 27.6 percent, respectively, in 2022.

At present, Hunan has 3,017 foreign trade enterprises doing business with African partners. Last year, Hunan's import and export with Africa reached 55.66 billion yuan -- up 42.8 percent year on year.