Imports fall as China’s trade balance rockets

Friday 8 August 2014

Hopefully this isn’t a bad omen for Australia’s iron ore exports, but Chinese trade data is out, which revealed that imports declined by 1.6% in July from a year ago, whereas exports recorded a strong 14.5% rise (see next chart).

As a result, China’s trade surplus surged to $47.3 billion in July (see next chart).

About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.