WASHINGTON: The Ministry of Commerce says China’s trade numbers fell in January, suggesting sluggish demand at home and abroad. The ministry said Wednesday that total foreign trade value in January declined 9.8 percent year on year to 1.88 trillion yuan. That’s as exports fell 6.6 percent in January and imports plunged 14.4 percent. The decline widened China’s monthly foreign trade surplus to about 406 billion yuan from 382 billion yuan in December.
Exports and imports by state-owned companies were among those badly hit, diving 15.7 and 25.7 percent year on year respectively. Private companies reported about a one-percent increase in both exports and imports.
Analysts say the surprisingly large fall in exports could be the result of correcting over-invoicing from December. The timing of the Chinese New Year is another factor that usually distorts data readings for the first two months of the year.
” Trade with China’s three biggest trade partners, the European Union, the United States and the Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), all dropped around 10 percent. Exports to India, Australia, and Russia increased by 9.8 percent, 4.8 percent and 0.9 percent respectively,” said Shen Danyang, Spokesman of Ministry of Commerce.
