The World Trade Organisation has raised its forecast of the annual rate of growth in the value of world trade this year to 3.6 percent from 2.4 percent because of sharp acceleration in growth in the first half of the year due in part to the momentum of the Chinese economy, the China Daily reports.

The Chinese government-run newspaper quotes WTO economists as attributing their expectation of faster growth to a resurgence of trade within Asia and a recovery of North American demand for imports.

The economists said faster economic growth, most notably in China and the United States, had increased demand for imports, spurring trade within Asia.

Sturdy growth in manufacturing and even sturdier growth in services boosted Chinese demand in the first half, the China Daily quotes the WTO economists as saying.