Hao Bao and Hao Ni are seen in Guangzhou, Guangdong province on Oct 9, 2021. [Photo by Zheng Erqi/chinadaily.com.cn]

Even with the COVID-19 pandemic, Guangdong province's foreign trade volume reached a new high last year.

Guangdong Customs said in a statement on Thursday that the province had an import and export volume of more than 8.27 trillion yuan ($1.28 trillion) in 2021, up 16.7 percent year-on-year.

It is the first time Guangdong has achieved annual foreign trade volume of more than 8 trillion yuan, officials said.

Exports reached 5.05 trillion yuan, tallying year-on-year growth of 16.2 percent, while the province's imports increased proportionally more – 17.4 percent – to hit 3.22 trillion yuan.

Guangdong's good foreign trade performance was assured when trade with major partners beyond the Chinese mainland, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Hong Kong special administrative region, the United States, European Union and Taiwan, hit double-digit growth.

Guangdong's trade with ASEAN, its biggest trading partner, came to 1.24 trillion yuan, up year-on-year by 14.3 percent, the statement said. ASEAN, Hong Kong, US, EU and Taiwan were Guangdong's top five trading partners last year.

The province is targeting an economic growth of about 5.5 percent this year.