Mumbai: The cargo handling capacity of China''s ports is expected to reach eight billion tonnes and 170 million TEUs in 2010 amidst a trade boom and continued economic expansion.

The combined cargo handling capacity of China''s ports totalled 5.6 billion tonnes and 93 million TEUs (twenty-foot container equivalent units) last year, the largest in the world for four consecutive years, the head of China Communication and Transportation Association, Qian Yongchang, said.

China had 12 ports with throughput capacities exceeding 100 million tonnes last year. Shanghai port handled 530 million tonnes of cargo last year, making it the busiest in the world.

China had been investing heavily in port construction as the national economy soars and foreign trade increases steadily. In 2006, more than 160 construction projects kicked off on China''s seaports, involving 60 billion yuan, up 30 per cent year-on-year.

China''s exports reached $252.1 billion, up 27.8 per cent, while imports were valued at $205.7 billion, up 18.2 per cent, figures from Chinese customs showed.

The priority of the investment in port construction would be on expanding capacity and improving comprehensive services, Mr Qian said.

China is expected to replace Germany as the world''s second largest trader this year with $2.1 trillion in foreign trade and may overtake the US to become the world''s largest trader by the end of the decade. China''s foreign trade in the first three months totalled $457.7 billion, up 23.3 per cent year-on-year.