BEIJING - China's trade surplus in May ballooned to 22.4 billion dollars, up 72.3 percent from the same month last year, state media said Monday, citing a commerce ministry official. 

The total trade surplus, in the first five months went up 80 percent from a year earlier to 85.7 billion dollars, according to the official cited by the China Business News.

The trade surplus in the first half of the year was likely to hit US$110 billion if the current trend continued, according to various media reports citing Yang Hongbin, the commerce ministry official.

Yang attributed the runaway trade surplus growth to the rise in the exports of resource products, noting steel product exports in May soared 117 percent year on year despite the tightening of government curbs.

The Chinese government last month said it will boost imports to narrow a trade surplus with the US that last year reached US$232.5 billion. The Ministry of Finance raised export taxes on 142 products and cut tariffs on 209 types of imports from June 1.

The World Bank last month raised its estimate for China's growth this year to 10.4 percent from 9.6 percent because of improved prospects for exports to Europe and developing countries.

China's economy, the world's fourth largest, expanded 11.1 percent in the first quarter.

The trade surplus may swell to US$250 billion-US$300 billion in 2007 from a record US$177.5 billion last year, according to a forecast by the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planner.