SHANGHAI - Shanghai's imports and exports reached 2.45 trillion yuan ($340 billion) in the first seven months of this year, up 7.4 percent year-on-year, local customs said Wednesday.

Over the period, Shanghai's exports rose 9.3 percent year-on-year to 995.9 billion yuan, while its imports increased by 6 percent to 1.45 trillion yuan, data from Shanghai Customs showed.

Shanghai's imports of consumer goods and bulk commodities rose rapidly from January to July as domestic demand continued to grow. It imported 329.12 billion yuan of consumer goods, up 13.5 percent year-on-year, accounting for 22.7 percent of the city's total import value.

During the same period, Shanghai exported 693.16 billion yuan of mechanical and electrical products, a year-on-year increase of 15.2 percent, accounting for 69.6 percent of the city's total export value. Among the items, exports of electric passenger vehicles and lithium batteries saw robust growth, up 159.5 percent and 130 percent year-on-year, respectively.

The city's trade with the European Union, its largest trading partner, amounted to 500.19 billion yuan, up 11.6 percent year-on-year, accounting for 20.4 percent of the city's total foreign trade volume in the first seven months.

Shanghai's trade with other members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) rose 5 percent and that with countries along the Belt and Road grew by 3 percent, accounting for 32.7 percent and 22.1 percent of the total, respectively.