China's toy exports have been hurt by the global financial crisis, with growth slowing substantially, the General Administration of Customs said on Friday.

Between January and October, China exported US$7.34 billion worth of toys, up 3.7 percent year-on-year. The growth rate was 16.6 percentage points lower than the year-earlier level.

Lingering pressure from safety-related product recalls last year also constrained growth, Customs said.

Of the total, 71.3 percent, or 5.23 billion U.S. dollars, was accounted for by export powerhouse Guangdong Province, up 5.6 percent. Another US$710 million worth and US$510 million worth was accounted for by Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, respectively, up 3 percent and 10.6 percent. Shanghai exported US$360 million worth of toys, down 14.1 percent.

Foreign-funded companies accounted for 47.2 percent of exports, with sales of US$3.47 billion, up 4.4 percent.

The United States and European Union were the major markets for Chinese toys.

(Xinhua News Agency December 19, 2008)