BEIJING — China's exports of goods rose 2.6 percent year-on-year in August, while imports fell 2.6 percent, customs data showed on Sept 8.

Trade surplus stood at 239.6 billion yuan ($33.79 billion) last month, expanding 41.8 percent from one year earlier, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The country's foreign trade climbed 3.6 percent year-on-year in the first eight months of the year, with its trade surplus widening 46 percent during the period.

In US dollar-denominated terms, the country's exports edged up 0.4 percent during the period, while imports declined 4.6 percent from one year earlier.

The European Union remained as China's largest trading partner during the period, with bilateral trade volume up 9.7 percent from one year earlier to 3.15 trillion yuan, followed by the ASEAN, up 11.7 percent to 2.74 trillion yuan, and the United States, down 9 percent to 2.42 trillion yuan.

China's trade with the Belt and Road countries totaled 5.83 trillion yuan for the January-August period, up 9.9 percent year-on-year, 6.3 percentage points higher than the overall pace, said the GAC, adding that the amount accounted for 29 percent of China's total trade volume.

The country's crude oil imports went up 9.6 percent to 328 million tons during the period, while imports of coal and natural gas increased 8.1 percent and 10.3 percent respectively to 220 million tons and 63.04 million tons.

The soybean imports, however, fell 9.2 percent from one year earlier to 56.32 million tonnes.

Customs data also showed the country exported more mechanical and electrical products as well as labor-intensive products.