The customs administration announced on Friday that China’s exports and imports fell less than expected in December.
China’s exports fell 9.9 percent in US dollars in December compared to a year ago, while China’s imports fell 7.5 percent in US dollars in December, year-on-year. Expectations were on the side of a 10 percent decrease in exports and a 9.8 percent decrease in imports.
Strong exports have supported the Chinese economy over the past two years. But economists expect demand from the US and Europe to slow.
According to Wind Information, China’s exports began to decline year-on-year in October for the first time since May 2020. For the full year 2022, China’s exports rose 7.7 percent and imports 1.1 percent, the customs office said.
According to official figures, cross-border e-commerce between China and other countries reached 2.11 trillion yuan ($301.42 billion) in 2022, an increase of 9.8 percent compared to a year ago. Direct-to-consumer exports of this medicine increased by 11.7 percent year-on-year.
