China’s exports jump in temporary boost amid trade | Australian Markets

China’s exports rose sharply in March after factories rushed out shipments earlier than the latest US tariffs took impact, however an escalating Sino-US trade struggle has darkened the outlook for factories and growth in the world’s second-biggest economic system.

US President Donald Trump has ratcheted up tariffs on Chinese items to hefty ranges that many economists say will profoundly affect world trade flows and business investment.

Exports rose 12.4 per cent year-on-year, a five-month high, handily beating 4.4 per cent growth anticipated in a Reuters ballot of economists. Exports grew 2.3 per cent in January-February.

Trade uncertainties have rocked financial markets this month after Trump introduced sweeping tariffs on many nations on April 2.

Trump unexpectedly paused the upper duties on a dozen economies days later, however slapped even stiffer levies on China that Beijing has dismissed as “a joke”.

Economists warn the March export figures might be eclipsed by a fast deteriorating outlook.

“Export growth accelerated in March, as manufacturers rushed to ship goods to the US ahead of ‘Liberation Day’,” mentioned Julian Evans-Pritchard, head of China economics at Capital Economics, in a word to purchasers.

“But shipments are set to drop back over the coming months and quarters.

“We assume it could possibly be years earlier than Chinese exports regain present ranges.”

Trump levied 10 per cent tariffs across all Chinese imports into the United States, effective on February 4, and followed that up with another 10 per cent in March, accusing Beijing of not doing enough to stem the flow of fentanyl into the United States.

Washington’s fresh round of tariffs lift duties on China to an eye-watering 145 per cent, prompting Beijing to jack up levies on US goods by 125 per cent in an intensifying trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.

Monday data also highlighted a soft underbelly in domestic demand in China, meaning policymakers will have their work cut out in trying to guard against any sharp trade downturn.

Inbound shipments fell 4.3 per cent, compared with a 2.0 per cent decrease forecast in a Reuters poll, and an unexpectedly steep contraction of 8.4 per cent at the start of the year.

Markets in China were up modestly, but much of the activity was linked to mixed messages from Trump over the weekend regarding exemptions on smartphones and other electronics. China’s blue-chip CSI300 Index climbed 0.3 per cent.

China’s March trade surplus was $US102.64 billion ($A162.83 billion), down slightly from $US104.8 billion in December, the most recent comparable reading.

More importantly, China’s trade surplus with the United States in the first quarter came in at $US76.6 billion, up from $US70.2 billion a year earlier.

This will likely keep the production powerhouse in Trump’s sights given that improving the trade gap is at the top of his agenda.

Beijing has vowed to fight US tariffs to the end and protect the economy from “exterior shocks”, with markets broadly anticipating authorities to roll out additional fiscal and financial stimulus measures in coming months to underpin growth.