China's imports and exports roared back to growth in April after a significant drop in the previous month, confirming the economy's recovery trend. The growth in exports underlines the country's role in global supply chains, while the expansion in imports highlights strong domestic demand. In April, in U.S. dollar terms, total imports and exports surged 4.4% year-on-year, reversing a 5.1% drop in March, according to the General Administration of Customs (GAC). Exports expanded by 1.5% year-on-year in April, compared to a 7.5% contraction in the previous month, while imports jumped by 8.4% year-on-year, reversing a 1.9% decline in March. In yuan-denominated terms, China's total imports and exports expanded by 5.7% year-on-year, accelerating from a 5% growth in the first quarter of the year, according to the GAC.
China's imports and exports with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) jumped by 8.5% year-on-year from January to April. Imports and exports with the EU, the second-largest trading partner, dropped by 1.8% year-on-year, while trade with the U.S., the third-largest trading partner, grew by 1.1% year-on-year. The latest data show robust growth in exports by private enterprises and exports of mechanical and electrical products – both major growth drivers. Private firms' total exports expanded by 9% year-on-year in the first four months in yuan terms, accounting for 64.7% of China's total exports. Exports of mechanical and electrical products grew by 6.9%, accounting for 59.2% of China's total exports.
“In the previous two years, the growth rate of imports was relatively low, and the total import and export volume was mainly supported by exports, reflecting insufficient domestic demand,” Hu Qimu, Deputy Secretary General of the digital-real economies integration Forum 50, told the Global Times. “But this year's data show that the growth rate of imports is higher than that of exports, indicating that domestic demand is recovering and the overall internal circulation is becoming smoother,” Hu added. The recent meeting of the Chinese Communist Party's Politburo called for efforts to actively expand trade in intermediate goods, the services and digital trades, and cross-border e-commerce exports, and to support private enterprises in expanding overseas markets.
In the first quarter of 2024, China's GDP expanded by 5.3% year-on-year, beating market expectations, while retail sales increased by 4.7% year-on-year. Beyond trade, China's two other main economic drivers – consumption and investment – are also expected to maintain a strong recovery momentum, thanks to intensifying policy support, the Global Times reports.
Total China-U.S. trade expanded 1.1% year-on-year to CNY1.47 trillion in yuan-denominated terms in the first four months, reversing a 0.7% contraction in the first three months. The Global Times quotes analysts as saying that talk of “overcapacity” and “de-risking” runs counter to the interests of the U.S. business community, and only pragmatic cooperation with the Chinese side would lead to win-win results. In the first four months, China's exports to the U.S. grew 2.4% year-on-year to CNY1.08 trillion in yuan-denominated terms, while imports edged down 2.5% to CNY387 billion. The U.S. remained China's third-largest trading partner in the first four months, after ASEAN and the EU. In the first quarter, China's exports to the U.S. gained 2.1%, while imports were down 7.7%.
The South China Morning Post adds that “export values returned to growth from contraction last month, but this was mainly due to a lower base for comparison. Export volumes were little changed from March,” according to Capital Economics. China exports in April were boosted by exports to emerging markets as well as transportation products, said analysts at HSBC. “The revival back to positive growth may be in part reflecting some of the green shoots we have been seeing in global demand,” they said. A lower base for comparison “played a role”, according to Capital Economics, but imports edged up in volume terms. “A boost in global commodity prices, as well as a more constructive domestic demand boosted by ongoing policy support were also contributing factors,” added analysts at HSBC. “A pickup in electronic and hi-tech imports, which also saw double digit growth, may have also been supported by some of the improvement in global demand as well as the recent domestic push for equipment upgrading.”
China’s trade surplus stood at USD72.4 billion in April, compared with USD58.6 billion in March. In dollar terms, China’s exports to the United States dropped by 2.8% in April, while exports to the European Union fell by 3.57% year-on-year. Exports to Russia, meanwhile, fell by 13.56% year-on-year in April, continuing the double-digit fall seen last month.
