East China's Shandong province exported 4.25 billion US dollars of machinery and electronic products during the first half of this year, up 52.4 percent year-on-year, according to a source with the local foreign economy and trade department on Thursday.

Machinery and electronic products contributed to 38.3 percent of local export growth during the period, overtaking textiles and garments to become the leading foreign exchange earner in the province for the first time. Textile and garment exports reached 3.86 billion dollars in the six months.

Shandong reported a foreign trade surplus of 200 million dollars of machinery and electronic products in the six-month period, with 45 percent of the machinery and electronic exports bound for European and American markets.

By the end of June, the province had approximately 3,200 machinery and electronic production businesses with the right to export on their own. The total includes 131 with annual exports beyond 5 million dollars, including the well known Haier Group.

Source: Xinhua