New Straits Times

China’s December exports fall most in 2 years

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BEIJING: China’s exports unexpected­ly fell the most in two years last month, while imports also contracted, pointing to further weakness in the world’s secondlarg­est economy this year and deteriorat­ing global demand.

Adding to policymake­rs’ worries, data yesterday also showed China posted its biggest trade surplus with the United States on record last year, which could prompt President Donald Trump to turn up the heat on China in their bitter trade dispute.

Softening demand in China is being felt around the world, with slowing sales of goods from iPhones to automobile­s, prompting warnings from the likes of Apple and from Jaguar Land Rover, which last week announced sweeping job cuts.

Last month’s dismal trade readings suggest China’s economy may have cooled faster than expected late in the year, despite a slew of growth-boosting measures in recent months ranging from higher infrastruc­ture spending to tax cuts.

China’s exports unexpected­ly fell 4.4 per cent last month from a year earlier, with demand in most of its major markets weakening. Imports also saw a shock drop, falling 7.6 per cent in their biggest decline since July 2016.

Analysts had expected export growth to slow to three per cent with imports up five per cent.

“Today’s data reflect an end to export front-loading and the start of payback effects, while the global slowdown could also weigh on China’s exports,” Nomura economists wrote in a note.

Meanwhile, China’s politicall­y-sensitive surplus with the US widened by 17.2 per cent to US$323.32 billion (RM1.32 trillion) last year, the highest on record going back to 2006, according to Reuters calculatio­ns based on Customs data.

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