BOFIT Weekly Review 2015/29
Slow export growth in China in the first half; value of imports declines
In the first six months of 2015, the value of exports increased about 1 % from 1H14. The value of imports declined 16 %. Exports to the US rose 9 %, while exports to EU countries declined 3 % and to Japan 11 %. China’s 1H trade surplus was $263 billion, up over 150 % y o-y. The trade surplus boost reflects lower import prices.
Foreign trade picked up in June. Exports were up 3 % y o y, while the slide in imports was only 6 %. June crude oil imports reached nearly 30 million metric tons, up 27 % y-o-y. Stocking of the country’s strategic reserves partly explains the surge in oil imports. Imported oil volumes were up 8 % y-o-y in the first half. The import price of oil in the first half of the year averaged about 30 % less than in 2014.
Value of China’s foreign trade
Source: Bloomberg