China's foreign trade has gotten off to a good start this year

China's foreign trade has gotten off to a good start this year, with an upbeat trend to follow, a customs official said on Monday.

The number of containers for export has been rising since late February, Yu Jianhua, head of the General Administration of Customs (GAC), told a press conference, addressing recent reports of empty containers piled at Chinese ports that have sparked concerns over trade.

Weekly GAC data shows that trade has been improving since February, according to Yu. Although the foreign trade of goods edged down 0.8 percent year on year in the first two months, exports expanded by a better-than-expected 0.9 percent, Yu said.