URUMQI — The comprehensive bonded areas in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region posted robust trade growth in the first eight months of the year, data with customs authorities showed.

Trade volume surged by 79 percent year-on-year to 9.42 billion yuan (about $1.4 billion) during Jan-Aug period in the zones, with imports growing by 65 percent to top 5.8 billion yuan, and exports climbing over 106 percent to 3.6 billion yuan, Urumqi Customs said.

Xinjiang has also seen rapid growth of cross-border e-commerce bonded imports, with a total of 19,000 cross-border bonded imported goods worth 1.27 million yuan entering the areas in three months by the end of August, said Wu Wei, deputy director of Urumqi Customs.

The region currently has four comprehensive bonded areas in Alataw Pass, Kashgar, Horgos, and the regional capital Urumqi, which handle grain, feed, and cotton processing, warehousing, and logistics.