Beijing saw its total foreign trade reach 2.96 trillion yuan (about 411.6 billion U.S. dollars) in the first 10 months of this year, customs data showed.

The figure marks an increase of 19.3 percent over the same period last year, according to Beijing customs.

From January to October, Beijing's imports surged 26.6 percent year on year to 2.5 trillion yuan, while exports dropped 9.1 percent to 464.6 billion yuan.

During this period, solar cells, lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles were the main export products.

In October alone, the Chinese capital saw its foreign trade rise 25.2 percent to 307.66 billion yuan.