Coronavirus: China’s imports and exports dropped again in March

Exports fell by 6.6 per cent compared to the same period a year earlier, according to data released on Tuesday by the General Administration of Customs

Imports dropped 1.0 per cent from a year earlier, having dropped 4 per cent in January and February combined

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Global trade is expected to fall by up to 32 per cent in 2020 due the damage to the economy from the coronavirus pandemic, the World Trade Organisation said last week. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 10:32am, 14 Apr 2020Updated: 10:23am, 21 May 2020

China’s imports and exports dropped in March, as the coronavirus continued to tear through the world’s second-largest economy.

Exports fell by 6.6 per cent in US dollar terms compared to the same period a year earlier, according to data released on Tuesday by the General Administration of Customs. This followed a 17.2 per cent contraction in January and February combined.

The March result was above the median forecast of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg for a 13.9 per cent decline from a year earlier.

Imports dropped 1.0 per cent from a year earlier, having dropped 4 per cent in January and February combined. The median forecast of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for imports to drop 9.5 per cent in US dollar terms.

With Covid-19 spreading worldwide, the global economy faces mounting downward pressure. Uncertainties are on the rise. China's foreign trade is encountering major difficulties

Li Kuiwen

“With Covid-19 spreading worldwide, the global economy faces mounting downward pressure. Uncertainties are on the rise. China's foreign trade is encountering major difficulties,” said Chinese customs spokesman Li Kuiwen.

Overall in the first quarter of 2020, China’s exports dropped 13.3 per cent, with imports down 2.9 per cent.

Last week, China’s Ministry of Commerce said that imports and exports had improved in March after the coronavirus outbreak caused a dramatic collapse in the first two months of 2020, but conceded the outlook for China’s exports remained gloomy given the economic damage being done by the continued spread of the virus globally.