中国：外国貿易

In December 2019, China registered a trade surplus worth USD 46.8bn, with exports at a level of USD 237.6bn and imports - USD 190.9bn, data from China General Administration of Customs showed.

The trade surplus decreased by 17.6% y/y, following a 10.1% y/y drop in November, partly due to the notable increase in imports driven by stronger demand for commodities from the manufacturing sectory.

This improvement in manufacturing is likely due to the subdued trade tensions between China and the US. The exports rose by 7.6% y/y after a 1.26% y/y decline in November and the imports soared unexpectedly by 16.3% y/y, compared to a 0.78% y/y increase in November.

The rising exports were mainly due to stronger demand from the ASEAN countries, the EU and Brazil in December 2019. Among China’s main trading partners, the US, South Korea and Japan had negative contributions. Exports to these countries declined by 2.7% y/y, 0.3% y/y and 0.2% y/y, respectively.

By contrast, exports to ASEAN, EU and Brazil grew by 3.7% y/y, 1.1% and 0.9% y/y, respectively. ASEAN, Australia and the category “other countries” were the three biggest contributors to the rise in imports, recording growth rates of 3.6% y/y, 1.9% y/y and 4.8% y/y, respectively.

Detailed data and analysis on China’s External Sector can be found in the CEIC China Economy in a Snapshot – Q4 2019.