China trade: exports tumble in May, adding to calls for Beijing to boost domestic consumption ‘with worst yet to come’
- China’s exports fell by 7.5 per cent in May compared with a year earlier, while imports fell by 4.5 per cent last month
- Weak exports caused by falling global demand have increased the pressure for Beijing to boost domestic consumption in the rest of the year, analysts said
China’s exports, once a key growth driver for the coronavirus-hit economy, recorded a sharp fall in May amid US trade tensions and slowing global demand, highlighting the need for more economic stimulus to lift domestic consumption and investment, analysts said.
The decline in trade, which contributed to around one fifth of annual economic growth in 2020-22, is just one of the headwinds faced by the world’s second-largest economy.
And China’s economic strength amid Beijing’s recovery efforts will be further assessed in the coming week when consumer inflation, unemployment, property investment and retail sales data is expected to be released.
With the worst yet to come for many developed economies, we think exports will decline further before bottoming out later this year
“With the worst yet to come for many developed economies, we think exports will decline further before bottoming out later this year,” economists at Capital Economics said.
