YINCHUAN -- Northwest China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region saw its foreign trade surge 30.5 percent year-on-year to reach 8.74 billion yuan (about $1.4 billion) in the first seven months of 2021, local customs authorities said.

In particular, its trade with countries along the Belt and Road amounted to 2.77 billion yuan, accounting for 31.7 percent of its total trade volume and marking a 46.1-percent increase over the same period last year, official data showed.

Vietnam and Thailand were among Ningxia's major trading partners during the period.

Ningxia, as the permanent host of the China-Arab States Expo, has been promoting opening-up and economic cooperation with the Arab states and countries along the Belt and Road.