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Investing.com-- China’s trade balance grew more than expected in March, aided by an outsized surge in exports amid apparent front-loading before the imposition of steep U.S. trade tariffs on the country.
Trade balance jumped to a surplus of $102.64 billion in March, government data showed on Monday. The print was higher than expectations of $74.30 billion.
The large trade surplus was driven chiefly by a 12.4% year-on-year surge in exports, which was far greater than the 4.4% expected by economists.
The surge in exports likely reflected increased front-loading by Chinese exporters, as they moved vast quantities of overseas shipments before the imposition of steep U.S. tariffs against the country in early-April.
U.S. President Donald Trump had in early-March imposed 20% on China over its alleged role in the flow of fentanyl into the United States.
But the 20% tariff was a fraction of the steep tariffs levied by Trump against China in the past week, as a trade war between the world’s largest economies escalated rapidly. Trump hiked tariffs against China to a cumulative 145%, drawing ire and retaliation from Beijing, which imposed a 125% tariff on American goods.
China had also imposed a 20% retaliatory tariff on U.S. imports in March.
This was likely reflected in China clocking weaker-than-expected imports for the month, which fell 4.3% y-o-y, against expectations for a 2% drop, data showed on Monday.
But China’s weak imports also reflect sluggish domestic demand, as the world’s second-largest economy struggles with slowing growth, which was trending lower even before its trade war with the United States.