China's trade with EU declined 3.7% in 2012

China's trade with the debt-troubled European Union dropped 3.7 percent year-on-year in 2012 to $546.04 billion, accounting for 14.1 percent of China's total foreign trade in 2012, which grew 6.2 percent year-on-year, Zheng Yuesheng, spokesman of the General Administration of Customs said at a news briefing on Thursday.

China's exports to the EU reached $333.99 billion in 2012, down 6.2 percent year-on-year, while China's imports from the EU edged up 0.4 percent year-on-year to $212.05 billion.

China's trade surplus with the bloc contracted 15.8 percent year-on-year to $121.94 billion, customs said.

The EU remained China's biggest trade partner and the biggest import source in 2012, while the United States replaced the EU as China's biggest export destination.