China plays important role as Montenegro's foreign trade rises 12 pct in 2017

BELGRADE, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Montenegro saw a marked hike in its foreign trade in 2017 with China playing a significant role both as an export destination and import source, according to figures from the national statistics bureau Monstat Friday.

Total trade volume was worth 2.67 billion euros (3.32 billion U.S. dollars), a 12-percent increase compared to the year before, with neighboring Serbia as its biggest trade partner.

Montenegro exported goods worth 66 million euros to Serbia and imported commodities worth 495.5 million euros from the neighboring country.

The other top export destinations were Bosnia and Herzegovina (47 million euros) and China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (31.7 million euros), while the other top import source countries were China (221.4 million euros) and Germany (196 million euros).

Exports increased by 13.9 percent, amounting to 337 million euros, with metals, especially iron and steel, forming the bulk of export commodities.

Imports increased 11.7 percent to 2.3 billion euros. Machines and transport vehicles comprised the lion's share of imports, valued at 552 million euros. Enditem