BEIJING — China's foreign trade sustained its upward momentum in October with notable growth and improved structure, official data showed Saturday.

The country's foreign trade expanded 4.6 percent year on year in October, with exports jumping 7.6 percent year on year and imports climbing 0.9 percent in yuan terms, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said in a statement.

In the first 10 months, China's foreign trade of goods totaled 25.95 trillion yuan (3.91 trillion U.S. dollars), up 1.1 percent year on year, accelerating from an increase of 0.7-percent in the first three quarters.

General trade, involving longer production chains and better reflecting the country's manufacturing strength, edged up 2.8 percent during the 10-month period, taking a larger share of the total trade of goods.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations remained China's largest trading partner during the period, followed by the European Union and the United States.

Private companies played a significant role in propelling trade growth, with their foreign trade expanding by 10.5 percent in the first 10 months to account for 46.2 percent of the country's total, GAC data showed.

Mechanical and electrical products took the lion's share of the country's exports, with their export value reaching 8.45 trillion yuan in the first 10 months, up 3.8 percent year on year.

Textile exports including masks jumped 34.8 percent year on year during the period, while auto exports slipped 6.7 percent.

China's foreign trade has emerged from the woes of the COVID-19 pandemic in recent months thanks to government policies to stabilize the sector.