The outlook for China's foreign trade is not favorable in the first quarter of the year amid sluggish global growth, especially among major trade partners such as the EU, the U.S. and Japan, Ministry of Commerce spokesman Shen Danyang said at a press conference Thursday.Shen said external demand waned after global economic growth slowed, weighing on the expansion of China's exports.Shen cited the EU, the country's largest export destination, as an example. The growth of last year's exports to the EU, which accounts for nearly one-sixth of China's export market, was six percentage points lower compared with the average level. Exports to the region dipped 3.2 percent year-on-year in January.China also faces obstacles in expanding imports because of slowing domestic growth and export restrictions in the EU and U.S., Shen said.