GUIYANG - Southwest China's Guizhou province saw its foreign trade grow by 20.6 percent year-on-year to 54.65 billion yuan ($8.43 billion) in 2020, customs statistics showed.

Exports in the province increased by 31.9 percent to 43.16 billion yuan, while total imports reached 11.49 billion yuan, a decrease of 8.9 percent year-on-year.

Private enterprises played a vital role in driving the province's foreign trade last year, contributing 35.53 billion yuan, 65 percent of the total trade volume.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region was Guizhou's largest trading partner last year, with trade volume increasing by 62.4 percent to 18.26 billion yuan. Guizhou's trade with the Belt and Road countries grew by 23.4 percent to 13.47 billion yuan last year.

According to the Guiyang customs in the provincial capital, local specialties in Guizhou like tea, lighter and guitar were the major export commodities last year. Guitars produced in Zheng'an county in the province, one of the largest guitar production bases in the world, were exported to more than 40 foreign countries and regions.