BEIJING, July 23 -- China's foreign trade of agricultural products rose 6.4 percent year on year in the first half of this year (H1), official data showed.

The country's imports and exports of farm produce totaled 171.76 billion U.S. dollars during the period, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

China's exports of agricultural products went up 1.7 percent year on year to 47.71 billion dollars, said the ministry.

Its imports of such products reached 124.05 billion dollars, climbing 8.3 percent from the same period last year.

China's trade deficit for farm produce stood at 76.34 billion dollars in the same period, up 12.9 percent year on year, the data also revealed.