BEIJING -- China's foreign trade volume grew by 15.7 percent year on year in April, faster than the 12.1 percent increase in March, according to customs data released on Wednesday.

The General Administration of Customs (GAC) said in a statement that total exports and imports stood at 2.23 trillion yuan (355.96 billion U.S. dollars) last month.

Exports rose 14.7 percent year on year to 1.17 trillion yuan, while imports surged 16.8 percent to 1.06 trillion yuan, the data showed.

China saw a trade surplus of 114.53 billion yuan in April, narrowing 1.7 percent from a year earlier.

In the first four months of the year, total foreign trade expanded 14 percent from a year ago to 8.36 trillion yuan, while trade surplus stood at 383.46 billion yuan.

The GAC started using the yuan, besides the U.S. dollar, to calculate its trade figures from February in an effort to promote the international use of the Chinese currency.