China’s March Trade Balance: Surplus shrinks sharply amid massive Import surges

China's Trade Balance for March, in Chinese Yuan (CNY) terms, arrived at CNY354.75 billion, narrowing sharply from the previous figure of CNY1.5 trillion.

Exports fell 0.7% year-over-year (YoY) in March from a 19.2% increase seen in January-February. The country’s imports jumped by a whopping 23.8% YoY in the same period vs. 17.1% recorded previously.

In US Dollar (USD) terms, China’s Trade Surplus shrank more than expected in March.

Trade Balance arrived at +51.1B versus +112B expected and +213.62B prior.

Exports (YoY): 7.1% vs. 8.3% expected and 21.8% last.

Imports (YoY): 27.8% vs. 11.1% expected and 19.8% previous.

Market reaction to China’s Trade Balance

AUD/USD holds lower ground near 0.7080 in an immediate reaction to the Chinese trade data. The pair is down 0.14% on the day, as of writing.