China’s December exports beat expectations, up 9.7 per cent to US$227.5 billion
The value of overseas sales jumps 9.7pc last month, underscoring the importance of foreign trade even as trade growth target is missed again
Exports will remain the key engine of economic growth this year even though the overall trade growth missed the annual target for the third consecutive year.
Among the "three engines" of the economy - trade, investment and consumption, "foreign trade will continue to be an important, or an indispensible, factor driving domestic economic growth," Customs bureau spokesman Zheng Yuesheng said yesterday.
The mainland's exports and imports rose by a combined 3.4 per cent last year, far below the official target of 7.5 per cent.
But trade growth may accelerate this year as the global economy improves, Zheng said.
In December, exports increased 9.7 per cent to US$227.5 billion from a year earlier, beating economists' consensus of a 6 per cent rise.
Imports fell 2.4 per cent to US$178 billion, compared with the forecast 6.2 per cent fall.
That brought the trade surplus to US$49.6 billion last month, almost doubling from US$25.6 billion a year earlier.