China seeks to encourage imports BEIJING, May 1 (UPI) -- China's State Council said it will encourage imports through tariff cuts as part of a goal to increase foreign trade by 10 percent in 2012. Xinhua reported Tuesday the State Council, China's cabinet, had issued an 18-clause guideline for increasing imports of advanced technology and stabilize commodities trades. The goals include accelerating advances in science and technology, increasing domestic consumption "appropriately" and reducing trade disputes, Xinhua said. In the first three months of 2012, China's imports reached $160.31 billion, while its trade surplus came to $670 billion. Imports and exports rose by 7.3 percent in the first quarter compared with the first quarter of 2011, but the pace of growth is the slowest since October through December in 2009. China Daily reported Tuesday first-quarter trading with Russia grew 33 percent compared with the first quarter a year earlier. But trade growth was more uneven with developed economies. With Japan, trading fell 1.6 percent in the first quarter. With Europe, trade rose only 2.6 percent in the first quarter compared with the same period a year earlier.