BEIJING, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Trade between China and members of the Arab League reached 1.72 trillion yuan (about 241.61 billion U.S. dollars) during the first seven months of 2025, setting a record for this period and rising 3.2 percent year on year, official data showed on Tuesday.

According to the General Administration of Customs, bilateral trade has expanded steadily in recent years -- with China remaining this bloc's largest trading partner for several consecutive years.

In July alone, two-way trade reached 245.31 billion yuan, up 6.9 percent year on year. China exported 135.54 billion yuan worth of goods to the bloc last month, while imports totaled 109.77 billion yuan.

Complementary economies and a mutually beneficial trade structure continue to fuel cooperation between the two sides. From January to July, more than 40 percent of China's crude oil imports were sourced from this bloc.

During the same period, China shipped 557.66 billion yuan of machinery and electronic products to the bloc, accounting for nearly 60 percent of its total exports to the bloc.

China is also deepening agricultural collaboration with the bloc, providing support in developing modern farming systems while expanding imports of signature agricultural products, such as Egyptian frozen strawberries, Lebanese chocolate and Algerian wool. Enditem