China's rise as the world largest exporter, though significant, does not mean Chinese exports will be of as high a quality as Germany's goods, experts said.
The Chinese government should seriously consider ways to improve the quality of goods for export and create more value-added products to strengthen its competitiveness, they said.
For the first time, China took the lead as the world's export champion, surpassing Germany by a minimal amount in the first half of the year.
A report released Tuesday by the World Trade Organization (WTO) shows that from January to June, China exported goods worth $521.7 billion. Germany, which has been the world's biggest exporter since 2003, exported goods worth $521.6 billion.
Despite the fact that Chinese exports have declined for nine months, "China's economic power is still rising, and excluding the exchange rate factor, China is expected to surpass Japan as the second-largest economy this year," said Cai Haitao, inspector of the Department of Policy Research under the Ministry of Commerce.
In late July, the WTO predicted China would pass Germany as the largest exporter in 2009.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development also said the ratio of China's foreign trade to global trade will increase from the current 8.7 percent to 10 percent when the global economy recovers.
"The figure is not surprising, thanks to the nation's growing economic strength. And the possibility is high that the momentum will continue," said Li Daokui, senior Chinese economist and director of the Economic and Management Institute of Tsinghua University.
