SHANGHAI - Shanghai saw a nearly doubled growth in import of garments and accessories from the European Union (EU) in the first seven months of this year, according to Shanghai customs figures on Tuesday.

From January to July, the import totaled 13.47 billion yuan ($2.07 billion), soaring 99.9 percent year-on-year, and nearly two times the export volume in the same period, which logged 7.04 billion yuan.

The customs figures also showed that in the first seven months, Shanghai's import of leather and fur products from the EU totaled 11.2 billion yuan, surging by 94.8 percent year-on-year.

France and Italy were the major direct beneficiary countries from surging imports by Shanghai. In the first seven months, Shanghai's trade volume with the two countries reached 61.21 billion yuan and 60.02 billion yuan, respectively, growing by 39.1 percent and 49.5 percent year-on-year.

Meanwhile, Shanghai's imports of cosmetics and personal care products from the EU increased by 21.2 percent in the first seven months, totaling 12.52 billion yuan.

The customs attributed the import growth to Chinese customers' increasing consuming power and interest in imported garments. Exhibition platforms such as the China International Import Expo have also played an important role in introducing more and more EU products into China.

Shanghai's trade volume with EU, Shanghai's biggest trading partner, hit 451.58 billion yuan in the first seven months, growing by 26 percent year-on-year and accounting for 20.4 percent of Shanghai's total foreign trade.