China's exports in yuan-denominated terms surged 18.7% year on year in March, while imports dipped 1.7%, customs data showed on Wednesday.

    That led to a monthly trade surplus of 194.6 billion yuan about (29.9 billion US dollars), down from February's 209.5 billion yuan, according to figures from the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

    Foreign trade in the first quarter was 5.9% lower than a year earlier at 5.2 trillion yuan, with exports down 4.2% and imports down 8.2%, according to China's (Xinhua) News Agency.

    Trade surplus for the first quarter widened 8.5% from one year earlier to 810.2 billion yuan. Exports to the European Union, China's biggest trade partner, dropped 1.4% year on year in the first three months of the year, the GAC data showed. 

    In the same period, exports to the United States, China's second-biggest trade partner, declined 3.4% and exports to the Association for Southeast Asian Nations, the third-largest trade partner, dipped 8.5%.