China exports slumped 12.4 percent in June
HONG KONG
China's exports tumbled 12.4 percent in June from a year earlier as demand weakened after central banks raised interest rates to curb inflation even as Chinese leaders struggled to keep a post-COVID recovery from faltering.
Customs data released yesterday showed imports slid 6.8 percent to $214.7 billion.
Exports edged up slightly from the month before, totaling $285.3 billion.
The trade surplus was $70.2 billion, rising from $65.8 billion in May.
Trade weakness adds to downward pressure on the world’s second-largest economy. Global consumer demand has weakened after the Federal Reserve and central banks in Europe and Asia raised interest rates to bring inflation down from near multi-decade highs by reining in business and consumer activity.
In January-June, China’s total trade including imports and exports fell nearly 5 percent from a year earlier.
Exports slipped 3.2 percent and imports declined 6.7 percent as prices of commodities like oil fell and demand inside China also faltered.
Exports to the United States tumbled 23.7 percent from a year earlier to $42.7 billion, while imports of American goods sank 4.1 percent to $14 billion. China’s politically volatile trade surplus with the United States narrowed by 30.6 percent to $28.7 billion.
The ruling Communist Party set this year’s official economic growth target at “around 5 percent,” up from last year’s 3 percent expansion, which was the second-weakest since the 1970s.
Some economists raised their growth forecasts to closer to 6 percent following unexpectedly strong trade figures in March.
