Chinas Export Down 2.8 per cent in May

China’s export declined 2.8 percent year on year to 1.17 trillion yuan (about 191.16 billion U.S. dollars) in May, marking a marginal improvement from the previous month.

Import slumped 18.1 percent over the same period of last year to 803.33 billion yuan, bringing trade surplus to 366.8 billion yuan, up 65 per cent year on year.

The total foreign trade slipped 9.7 per cent from a year ago to 1.97 trillion yuan, according to the data released by the General Administration of Customs (GAC) on Monday.

FOREIGN TRADE DROPS

“China’s export decline narrowed for the second consecutive month in May.”

“The decline in April decreased 8.4 percent over March, and the decline in May was 3.4 percent lower over April. This indicates China’s export is improving,” said Huang Songping, deputy head of GAC’s Department of Comprehensive Statistics.

The GAC data also showed that the total foreign trade in the first five months of this year dropped 7.8 per cent year on year.

Export rose 0.8 percent to 5.4 trillion yuan and import dropped 17.2 percent to 4.07 trillion yuan. The trade surplus doubled to reach 1.33 trillion yuan year on year.