China Jan-Feb exports smash estimates with 7.1% rise

China reported a sharply better-than-expected rise in exports for the first two months of the year, according to official figures published on Thursday.

Exports surged 7.1% in January and February on an annual basis, said the General Administration of Customs – hammering estimates of a 1.9% rise.

The jump was against a lower comparator with the same period in 2023 as the world’s second-largest economy emerged from its draconian zero-Covid restrictions.

Imports also rose 3.5% in January-February, against the 0.2% increase recorded in December and forecasts of 2%.

China's trade surplus was $125.1bn in the first two months of this year, having come in at $75.3bn in December.

“In all, we think Chinese exports are on the road to a slow recovery, but the journey will be bumpy. External demand continued to improve in the first two months of 2024, with exports to non-G7 economies growing faster than those to traditional developed markets,” said Kelvin Lam, senior China economist and Pantheon Macroeconomics.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com