The export hub of Guangdong province aims to see positive growth in exports of 1 percent this year, despite the continued downward pressure on the country's foreign trade, according to a government work report released on Monday.

The economic powerhouse set its growth rate during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) at 7 percent, maintaining "medium-to-high speed" development, Guangdong Governor Zhu Xiaodan said as he delivered the report at the annual local legislative session, which opened in Guangzhou, the provincial capital.

The province saw its GDP grow by an average 8.5 percent a year during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15).