February trade data from China is skewed by the New Year break. YTD figures, i.e. for January and February combined, are a better guide given the moveable holiday period each year.
USD denominated numbers for the January – February months:
- Imports +3.5% (expected +1.5%
- exports +7.1% (expected +1.9%)
- trade balance 125.2bn USD (expected +103.7 bn USD)
Better than expected figures for both imports and exports are a welcome result.
Yuan denominated:
- imports +10.3% y/y
- exports +10.3% y/y
- trade balance 890.87bn surplus
Chinese equities are showing minor gains: