Shandong province's foreign trade import and export volume is expected to reach US$160 billion by the end of this year, rising by about 30 percent, according to a conference on the provincial foreign trade and economic cooperation work on Dec. 29.

Among them, the export volume is expected to amount to US$94 billion, rising by 25 percent?and imports?to be?worth US$66 billion, up 39 percent.

The province's foreign trade saw a big increase over the last decade--from 2001's about US$29 billion, to?about US$189 billion in 2010, according to statistics of the provincial department of commerce.

At the same time, more of the world's leading companies have opened branches in Shandong to manage their investment, including 159 Fortune 500 Global companies. In the first 11 months of this year, a total of 60 of the Fortune 500 were granted approvals to make their first investments in Shandong Province.