China’s export growth picked up pace in September, buoyed by manufacturers finding buyers in markets beyond the US as a tariff deal with President Donald Trump remained elusive while investors grappled with the latest salvos in their trade war.
Outbound shipments from the world’s second-largest economy rose an annual 8.3 per cent last month at $US328.5 billion ($A505.6 billion), customs data showed on Monday, beating a six per cent increase in a Reuters poll and registering the fastest growth since March. They compared with the 4.4 per cent increase in August.
Imports grew 7.4 per cent, their fastest pace since April 2024, against a 1.3 per cent gain a month prior, and a forecast rise of 1.5 per cent.
China’s exports to the United States have fallen for six straight months. In August they dropped 33 per cent.
“Chinese firms are actively tapping into new markets with the relative cost advantage of their goods, that’s for sure,” said Xu Tianchen, senior economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit in Beijing.
“The United States now only accounts for less than 10 per cent of China’s direct exports,” he added.
“100 per cent tariffs would no doubt add to the pressure China’s export sector is under, but I don’t think the impact will be as large as before.”
Trump on Friday unveiled additional levies of 100 per cent on China’s US-bound exports, reviving the trade war between the two economic heavyweights, after Beijing put several new rare earth elements under export controls and imposed additional scrutiny on semiconductor users.
Analysts said China was likely trying to increase its leverage ahead of expected talks between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.
No other country comes close to matching US consumption power, which once absorbed over $US400 billion ($A616 billion) of Chinese goods each year.
But policymakers are banking on factory owners boosting sales to Asia, Africa and Latin America to offset the trade curbs and keep the $US19 trillion ($A29 trillion) export-oriented economy on track to hit an official annual growth target of around 5 per cent.
The two superpowers appear to be struggling to chart a path beyond their current tariff truce, a 90-day pause from August 11 that ends around November
Chinese exporters have made strides in other markets. Exports to regional rival India hit an all-time high in August, according to the most recent customs data, and shipments to Africa and Southeast Asia are on track for annual records.
with AP
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