BEIJING, Aug. 3 -- China's service trade value grew 8.5 percent year on year in the first six months of this year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed on Thursday.

Total trade value stood at 3.14 trillion yuan (about 439.19 billion U.S. dollars), according to the data.

Service exports declined 5.9 percent year on year to 1.32 trillion yuan, and service imports were 1.81 trillion yuan, up 22.1 percent from a year ago.

The service trade deficit stood at 489.4 billion yuan in the first half of the year, the data showed.

China's trade of knowledge-intensive services maintained steady growth in the period, rising 12.3 percent year on year to about 1.36 trillion yuan.

The figure represents 43.5 percent of the total service trade in the first six months, up 1.5 percentage points from a year ago.

During the period, services related to the travel sector registered a notable recovery. Total trade value in the sector surged 65.4 percent from a year earlier to 650.94 billion yuan.

Exports and imports of travel services expanded by 52.4 percent and 66.4 percent year on year, respectively, according to the data.