China stocks end higher on upbeat trade data

China stocks rose on Thursday, bolstered by robust trade data, and as the Chinese government warned of “necessary response” in the event of a trade war with the US.

At the close, the Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.51 percent at 3,288.41 points, while the blue-chip CSI300 index climbed 1 percent to 4,077.60 points. Main sectors rallied across the board, led by consumer and healthcare stocks.

China’s exports unexpectedly surged at the fastest pace in three years in February, suggesting both its economy and global growth remain resilient even amid rising trade tensions with the US.

Trade tensions have jumped to the top of the list of risks facing China this year, with planned US tariffs on steel and aluminum signaling more measures may be on the way, Zhou Hao, senior emerging markets economist at Commerzbank, told the Reuters Global Markets Forum this week.

China will respond as necessary in the event of a trade war with the US, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday, while warning that such a war would only harm all sides.

The US tariffs are expected to go into effect in two months, though economists see little immediate impact on China. Capital Economics estimates that China exports of steel and aluminum to the US account for less than 0.1 percent of its GDP, as both are already limited by anti-dumping measures.

“On paper, China has more to lose from a trade war – it exports far more to the US than it imports. There are, however, a few alternative sources for the main products the US buys from China,” the research firm said in a note on Wednesday.

About 14.98 billion shares were traded on the Shanghai exchange, roughly 75.2 percent of the market’s 30-day moving average of 19.93 billion shares a day. The volume in the previous trading session was 16.87 billion.