The value of China's textile and garment exports has continued to rise this year, with trade figures pointing to a 16.4% rise in shipments in April compared with the same month last year.

Exports rose to US$14.5bn in the month, with textile exports up 24.8% to $6.4bn and garment exports rising 10.6% to $8.2bn, the General Administration of Customs said.

This is a rise of 31.8% on the $11bn of exports booked in March.

For the first four months of this year, China's textile and garment shipments grew 15.6% year-on-year to $53.8bn.

Textile exports from January to April rose 26.1% to $21.6bn, while garment exports climbed 9.5% to $32.2bn.

Chinese export figures are helped by the ongoing global economic recovery, as well as comparisons with last year's weak figures when US and EU retailers reined in their inventories.

Companies are, however, keeping a wary eye on the debt crisis that has embroiled countries in Europe such as Greece, Ireland, Spain and Portugal.

Rising costs of labour and raw materials are another concern, with the China National Textile and Apparel Council noting that average salaries had risen by 10-30% since last year, while the price of cotton rose by 14% per ton from January to May.