BEIJING — The State Council has approved the implementation of a plan for high-quality development of foreign trade during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said.

The plan, to be implemented by the MOC and other departments, put forward the guiding concepts, basic principles, main objectives, key tasks and support measures for the high-quality development of foreign trade during the period.

The plan highlighted innovation and development mode transformation in foreign trade, as well as low-carbon transformation, digital transformation, further opening-up and better risk control in foreign trade.

The plan outlined 45 key tasks in 10 categories, involving the structure of goods trade, innovation in service trade, new modes of foreign trade, and better risk control system.

China's foreign trade staged a stellar performance in the first three quarters, with total imports and exports expanding 22.7 percent year-on-year to 28.33 trillion yuan (about $4.43 trillion), beating market expectations and playing a bigger part in driving growth.