China’s exports defy trade war headwinds in July as growth surges to 7.2%
China’s exports beat market forecasts in July as rising shipments to Europe, Africa and Latin America offset the impact of US tariffs
China’s exports continued to accelerate in July as a fall in shipments to the United States was offset by growth in a range of markets, including Africa, Europe and Latin America, with chip exports surging by nearly 30 per cent, year on year.
The world’s largest goods exporter saw outbound shipments rise last month by 7.2 per cent, year on year, to US$321.8 billion, according to customs data released on Thursday.
The figure was higher than the 5.8 per cent growth rate recorded in June and beat the 5.8 per cent growth forecast in a market survey by the Chinese financial data provider Wind.
China’s imports, meanwhile, rose by 4.1 per cent year on year last month, in a possible sign that the country’s sluggish domestic demand is starting to pick up. A poll by Wind had predicted a 0.27 per cent growth for July.
That led China’s trade surplus to narrow slightly to US$98.2 billion for the month.