SHENZHEN, CHINA – MAY 1: The Chinese national flag is seen in front of stacked shipping containers bearing MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company), Maersk, and Hamburg Süd branding at Yantian Port on May 1, 2026, in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China.
Cheng Xin | Getty Images News | Getty Images
China’s exports rose more than expected in July, though growth eased from June’s blistering pace, with global demand for high-tech components helping absorb the country’s goods.
Exports grew 23.9% in U.S. dollar terms in July from a year earlier, official customs data showed Friday, topping Reuters-polled analysts’ forecast for a 22.2% growth. That slowed from June’s 27% surge, which was the fastest pace since October 2021.
Imports rose 27.5% last month, just shy of Reuters estimates of 27.9% in a Reuters poll, slowing from June’s 36% jump — the quickest in five years.
A worldwide build-out of AI infrastructure has helped support the world’s second-largest economy through a year of geopolitical shocks, keeping growth on track even as domestic consumption has been subdued.
China’s integrated circuit exports by value nearly doubled this year as of the end of July, from the same period last year, according to official data compiled by Wind Information. In July alone, chip exports surged 117% from a year earlier.
Exports of mechanical and electrical products accounted for more than 60% of China’s total shipments in the first seven months this year, according to China’s customs authority, driven by demand for electric vehicles, lithium battery and wind power generating equipment. Among the other fast-growing export categories were 3D printers and industrial robotics.
Chinese exporters had also been racing goods onto U.S.-bound ships ahead of an anticipated increase in tariffs. Washington applied a new 12.5% levy on Chinese products in late July, replacing a temporary 10% rate that had lapsed.
Shipments to the U.S. grew around 17% from a year ago, quickening from about 14% in June, according to Wind, while imports increased 15%. China’s exports to the European Union continued to grow, expanding 16% year on year in July, while imports from the bloc shrank 1%.
The trade surplus came in at $112.5 billion, exceeding analysts’ estimates of about $107 billion, while narrowing from $125.6 billion in June, customs data showed.
China’s export engine is likely to remain strong in the third quarter, said Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.
Beijing’s massive trade surplus, which exceeded $1 trillion last year, has become a standing grievance for its trading partners, including the U.S. and the European Union, where officials have pressed China to rebalance its economy toward boosting consumption.
“I expect intense negotiations between China and the major trading partners in the coming months on what can be done to make trade more balanced,” said Zhang, ahead of the expected U.S.-China summit in September and the EU-China meeting on economic relations in October.
Chinese authorities reaffirmed support for the slowing economy during a policy-setting meeting in late July, including accelerated fiscal rollout and timely monetary adjustment, while stopping short of announcing concrete steps to boost household spending.
China’s economy in the second quarter expanded at its weakest pace since the fourth quarter of 2022, with gross domestic product growth coming in at 4.3% in the April to June period.
Retail sales eked out 1% growth in June, a thin rebound from May’s 0.6% contraction. Consumer inflation cooled to 1% in June from 1.2% in May, while factory-gate prices rose 4.1%, the strongest growth since July 2022.
