China has mapped out a plan to boost its imports to reduce its huge trade surplus, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on Friday.

The new measures include increasing imports of large machinery components, advanced technology and resource-intensive goods, signaling a strategic transformation for China to embrace a larger influx of foreign goods and capital.

"We will continue to give duty-free status to imports from the least developed countries and expand imports from them," a MOC official told Xinhua.

The announcements follows the signing of four business contracts between China and the United States on Wednesday, involving a 550 million U.S. dollar aircraft engine deal with GE Aviation and the U.S. retailer Home Depot's acquisition of Chinese home improvement store the Home Way.

"China has made the right choice to expand its imports as it will help the country satisfy the demands of its rapidly developing economy," said Tang Min, Chief Economist with the Asia Development Bank.

China's exports have rocketed from 245 billion dollars to the estimated 800 billion dollars in 2006 since its accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001, while its trade surplus has hit a new high of 157 billion dollars in the first 11 months of the year.

The growing gap has led to increased trade frictions and cranked up pressure on the appreciation of the Chinese Renminbi.

Zhang Junsheng, professor with the WTO research institute at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, said an increase in imports would help redress the trade imbalance and optimize the structure of the mounting foreign reserve.