China exports posted solid growth in December, possibly as shippers tried to beat pending US Trump Administration tariffs, while imports firmed, according to official China customs data released Monday.
Mainland China exports rose 10.7% on year in December, while imports rose 1% on year, reported the Customs Administration.
China posted a trade surplus of $104.84 billion in December.
For the full year 2024, China exported $3.58 trillion worth of goods and services, while importing $2.59 trillion, resulting in a record surplus of $990 billion, according to Custom Administration figures.
Despite the marginal rise in overall imports in December, possibly suggesting a soft domestic China economy, there were increases in certain imported commodities, reported Reuters.
Mainland China imports of unwrought copper rose 17.8% on year in December, while coal imports increased by 11%. 17.8%
Inbound shipments of rron ore in December rose 11.5% on year, while rare earth imports gained by 41.1%.
In contrast, crude oil imports in December imports slipped by 1.1% on year.
China trade results and policies are being watched closely in Washington, with the pending inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump.
Critics of Beijing change that China has used state-run banks to over-finance the nation's manufacturing capacities, and subsidize exports.
China "is making a major mistake in producing two to three times domestic demand in a number of areas, whether it's steel or robotics or electric vehicles, lithium batteries, solar panels, and then exporting the excess all around the world," said R. Nicholas Burns, the present U.S. ambassador to China, reported The New York Times.
