China’s imports, exports rise in November, exceeding estimates

According to media reports, China’s imports showed the fastest increase in two years in November on the back of strong demand for commodities. Exports were also up indicating an increase in domestic and global demand.

Chinese imports in November climbed by 6.7% year over year, opposing analysts’ estimates, which called for a drop of 1.3%. This was also the biggest growth since 2014. China’s imports of commodities such as iron ore, crude oil, coal and copper especially soared in November although the yuan considerably weakened.

Exports also posted an increase of 0.1% in November and stood above the analysts’ preliminary expectations of a 5% drop. Although there was an increase on a monthly basis, cumulative exports for the January-November period decreased 7.5% from the same period of last year while imports were down by 7.7% in the same period.

China posted a trade surplus of $44.61 billion in November when compared to $49.06 billion in October, below initial expectations of $46.30 billion.

It is reported that the Chinese economy appeared to be steadying on the back of new infrastructure projects launched by the government and the boom in the housing market. However, some analysts reportedly warned that a property boom could be reaching its peak and this might decrease demand for raw materials and that the country might also have to take some measures against potential tariffs on imports of Chinese products by president-elect Trump.