BEIJING—China’s exports surged in June while import growth slowed to a still-robust level as its economic rebound from the coronavirus leveled off.
Exports rose 32.2 percent from a year earlier to $281.4 billion, accelerating from May’s 28-percent growth, Customs data showed Tuesday. Imports grew 36.7 percent to $229.9 billion, but that was down from the previous month’s explosive 51-percent rise.
China led the global recovery from the pandemic but domestic consumer spending and other activity is weaker than expected. Exporters face disruptions in the global flow of industrial components, including processor chips and controls imposed by some governments on travel and business to fight the virus’s more contagious delta variant.
Trade “still faces many uncertain and unstable factors,” said a spokesman for the Customs agency, Li Kuiwen.
Trade growth “may slow down” in the second half, but is “expected to remain relatively fast,” Li said at a news conference.
Chinese exporters benefited from the relatively early reopening of the economy, while competitors still faced anti-virus shutdowns.
The boom is forecast to soften as entertainment and other global service industries reopen and consumer spending habits return to normal. However, June’s strong figures suggest “this dampening trend may occur later than previously expected,” David Chao of Invesco said in a report.
Exports to the United States rose 17.8 percent over a year ago to $46.9 billion while imports of American goods grew 37.6 percent to $14.3 billion despite tariff hikes still in place in a lingering trade war.
China’s global trade surplus swelled 11 percent over a year earlier to $51.5 billion while the politically sensitive surplus with the United States expanded 10.9 percent to $32.6 billion.
President Joe Biden, who took office in January, says he wants better relations with Beijing but has yet to indicate whether he will roll back tariff hikes imposed on Chinese goods by his predecessor, Donald J. Trump, in a fight over Beijing’s technology ambitions.
Biden’s trade envoys have talked with Chinese officials by video link but have set no date for negotiations. AP
Image courtesy of Chinatopix via AP, File