China's foreign trade situation remained sophisticated and grim, as this year there are more uncertain and unstable factors, said an official from the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday.

"The Foreign trade situation is still not optimistic, and some difficulties couldn't be resolved in the short term. China needs make more effort to stabilize trade volume," said Zhang Ji, assistant minister at the Ministry of Commerce.

Zhang said the trend was mainly caused by sluggish external demand, rising costs in the domestic market, and the fact that some industries and orders are being relocated to other nations.

To meet the challenge, the organizers of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, are expanding the fair's function to meet the more diverse demands of clients.

The fair will start on Oct 15 in Guangzhou. It is held twice a year and is considered an important barometer of China's future trade activity.

"In addition to serving as a place for trade transactions, we will build the fair into an inclusive platform for companies to showcase their products, share industry information, and get connected with more potential clients," said Li Jinqi, director general of the China Foreign Trade Centre.

Li said that the volume of trade deals that were made under the help of the Canton Fair's network accounted for almost 50 percent of the amount of annual exports.