A foreign merchant seeks business opportunities at a Ningbo company booth at the Canton Fair in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. [Photo/cnnb.cm.cn]

Ningbo's imports and exports reached 787.75 billion yuan ($117.5 billion) from January to November, according to statistics from local custom authorities.

The figure represented a year-on-year increase of 14.3 percent, much faster than the national average of 2.4 percent, in the first 11 months of this year.

The city's imports stood at 280.2 billion yuan over the period, rising by 18.6 percent, while exports amounted to 507.55 billion yuan, an increase of 12.1 percent, according to Ningbo Customs.

The EU, United States and ASEAN remain the city's top three trading partners.

Official data shows that Ningbo's trade value with the three economies stood at 164.34 billion yuan, 142.7 billion yuan and 72.88 billion yuan respectively, with the combined value accounting for 48.2 percent of the city's total trade.

The exports of mechanical and electrical products reached 278.79 billion yuan, up 11.2 percent and accounting for 54.9 percent of the total exports in the period.

Notably, an increasing number of local companies are tapping into markets in countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

One such company is Aux Group. The air conditioner manufacturer has secured footholds in more than 50 percent of BRI countries.

The company's market share ranks in the top three in countries such as Brazil, Thailand, Mexico, India, Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Zhang Jingguo, executive president of Aux Group, revealed that the company set up a plant in Thailand in an attempt to expand its business presence in ASEAN member states, adding that the plant, after being put into operation in January next year, will have a production capacity of 1.1 million smart air conditioners.

China-Base Ningbo Group is another company in Ningbo which is tapping into opportunities created by the BRI.

According to Ying Xiuzhen, vice president of the company, in the first 10 months of this year, the company's trade volume with BRI countries reached $580 million, accounting for 44.3 percent of its total.

In Latvia, the group has established an independent cross-border e-commerce station and has new business contacts with all the Baltic countries.

Yin revealed that the company plans to begin exporting new energy buses to Latvia next year.

In a bid to help small companies tap into overseas markets, the local authorities also organized a series of expos in countries such as Egypt, Kazakhstan and Romania.