BEIJING — China and Russia saw their bilateral trade grow steadily in the first eight months of this year, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

Bilateral trade totalled $70.59 billion during this period, up 4.5 percent year-on-year, MOC spokesperson Gao Feng told a news conference on Sept 12.

China's direct investment in Russia expanded 13 percent year-on-year in the first seven months of 2019, covering a wide range of sectors ranging from energy and agriculture and forestry development to automobile and food processing. Investment approaches also diversified.

The two sides are promoting the establishment of a joint sci-tech innovation fund to support investment and cooperation in this field, according to Gao.

China remained Russia's largest trading partner for the ninth consecutive year in 2018, with bilateral trade topping $100 billion.

Bilateral service trade almost doubled in 2018 compared with the previous year, according to Gao.