China is expected to overtake Germany as the world's top merchandise exporter this year, the World Trade Organisation has said.

This is partly due to the weak performance of the European economy, WTO chief economist Patrick Low said on July 22 on the sidelines of a two-day gathering of trade ministers from APEC economies in Singapore.

Meanwhile, international financial institutions also predicted that as the world economy gradually pulls out of the recession later this year, China will benefit from recovering trade.

Figures from the global trade body show that China 's merchandise exports totaled 1,428 billion USD last year, slightly below Germany's 1,465 billion USD.

The WTO said that global trade will plunge by 10 percent this year, the largest decline in six decades. But the rate of decline is easing, said Pascal Lamy, Director-General of WTO at the trade ministers' meeting.

WTO data show that Asian countries are leading a recovery in global trade, Lamy added./.