Chinese customs officers seized 142.5 kilograms of drugs involving 495 cases of trafficking last year, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said Thursday.

It did not give a total value for the drugs.

The administration had expanded cooperation with its counterparts in the United States, Australia, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong, the agency said.

Customs authorities in the coastal Guangdong Province confiscated drugs worth 3.1 million yuan (about 456,000 US dollars) after successful joint raids with counterparts in Hong Kong. The cooperation helped break up two drug-selling chains and five drug-making gangs.

GAC said China faced "grim conditions and a tough task" as the illegal drug trade persisted globally and traffickers sought wider access.

The agency said it would step up cooperation with other customs bodies under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation.

(Xinhua News Agency June 19, 2009)