BEIJING -- China's service trade maintained steady growth in the first 11 months of the year, with total imports and exports reaching over 7.2 trillion yuan (approximately $1.02 trillion), up 7.1 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Commerce said on Wednesday.

Specifically, service exports rose 13.4 percent to nearly 3.2 trillion yuan during this period, while imports increased 2.5 percent to more than 4 trillion yuan, according to the ministry's data. Notably, the service trade deficit narrowed by 279.63 billion yuan compared to the same period of 2024.

Knowledge-intensive services saw continued growth in trade, with imports and exports totaling roughly 2.73 trillion yuan -- up 5.6 percent year-on-year.

Travel service trade totaled nearly 1.98 trillion yuan, an increase of 8.2 percent compared with a year earlier. Specifically, travel services exports surged 51.3 percent during this period, according to data.