The Qingdao Area of the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone saw robust growth in foreign trade in the first four months of 2021, according to the local business bureau.

Imports and exports were valued at 49.3 billion yuan ($7.74 billion) from January-April, with the modern finance and cross-border ecommerce industries performing especially well.

This is an increase of 60.8 percent over the same period last year and accounts for 20.1 percent of the city's total, the local business bureau data shows.

Actual use of foreign investment in the Qingdao free trade zone increased six-fold over the same period last year to $440 million, accounting for 21.3 percent of the city's total.

Jiushi Linde (Qingdao) Aviation Financial Leasing Co made the first aircraft financial leasing transaction in the Qingdao free trade zone this year, amounting to 170 million yuan.

The Qingdao free trade zone has also established a cross border e-commerce integrated service platform for various top Chinese online retail sites, including Tmall Global, Kaola and Vip.com, aiming to improve the business environment.

Tmall Global, an extension of Tmall.com that enables companies based outside China to directly sell products to Chinese consumers, will cooperate with the Qingdao free trade zone to promote the sale of nut snacks, fish gelatin, and health tea, in order to create a new and efficient supply platform for overseas brands looking to benefit from "double circulation".