Officials have said on Saturday that China reported its first monthly trade deficit in six years.

In March, Chinese exports were valued at $112.11 billion, up 24.3 percent from a year before, while imports climbed 66 percent, to $119.35 billion, resulting in a $7.24 billion trade deficit, the General Administration of Customs has said.

The state-run Xinhua news agency reported that the trade deficit is the first since China posted a $2.26 billion deficit in April 2004.

China's trade surplus had been falling since 2010 began, Li Jian of the Research Institute under the Ministry of Commerce said.

Li further said, "The deficit in March was just an extension of this trend."

China did not intentionally pursue a trade surplus and that the country encourages imports and hopes to achieve a trade balance, he further added.

In a report, the GAC attributed the March deficit to declining exports of labor-intensive products, soaring imports and rising commodity prices.

It was said by the report that the deficit was small and China had maintained a "basic balance" between imports and exports. (With Inputs from Agencies)