Overview

• China's exports fell for a sixth consecutive month in October 2023, dropping by 6.4% from a year earlier to US$274.8 billion. The decline was primarily due to price effects, with increased manufacturing capacity and levelling off in demand encouraging exporters to reduce prices.
• Exports to the United States dropped by 8.2% year on year, marking the fifteenth consecutive month of contractions, while exports to the European Union dropped to a 12.6% year-on-year decline.
• China's imports, however, experienced a surprise growth of 3% last month to US$218.3 billion, up from a 6.2% decline in September, exceeding predictions of a 4.7% drop. This ended 11 consecutive months of declines, suggesting improvements in domestic demand.
• The rise in imports resulted in China’s overall trade surplus narrowing to US$56.5 billion in October, down from US$77.71 billion in September.
• Analysts anticipate China may need to introduce further stimulus measures to ensure the economy hits its annual growth target of around 5%, as ongoing headwinds persist from weak global demand and the domestic property sector.