China's steel billets exports totaled 0.13 million tons in the first half, down 97 percent from a year ago, according to customs statistics.

     Its imports came to 0.1million tons, plummeting 28.5 percent.

     Coke exports amounted to 7.44 million tons, down 7.5 percent, with the value of 3.15 billion US dollar, soaring up 134.2 percent.

     Iron ore imports reached 230.04 million tons, up 22.5 percent with the value of 30.5 billion US dollars, jumping up 117.3 percent.

     Steel products export came to 26.94 million tons in the first half of the year, a drop of 20.2 percent from a year ago, with the value totaling 25.3 billion US dollars, up 12.9 percent over the same period of 2007.

     Steel imports in January-June amounted to 8.28 million tons, 4.1 percent lower from a year ago.

     According to Xu Xiangchun, a senior analyst from My Steel Net, the sharp surge in exports was possibly caused by the exports reduction to East Asia despite China's rising steel exports to the USA, EU and East Asia.