China Balance of Trade

Last Release

Dec 31, 2024

Actual

104.84

Units In

USD HML

97.44

Frequency

Monthly

Next Release

Mar 07, 2025

Time to Release

1 Months 20 Days 2 Hours

Highest	Lowest	Average	Date Range	Source
125.16 Feb 2024	-61.99 Feb 2020	16.8 USD HML	1981-2024	General Administration of Customs

Since 1995, China has been recording consistent trade surpluses which from 2004 to 2009 has increased 10 times. In 2019, China posted a trade surplus of USD 421.9 billion, the biggest since 2016, as exports increased 0.5 percent and imports fell 2.7 percent on weak domestic demand and trade tensions with the US. The biggest trade surpluses were recorded with the US, Hong Kong, the EU - in particular the Netherlands, the UK, Poland, Spain, Italy and Belgium - India, Vietnam, the Philippines, Singapore, the UAE, Pakistan, Turkey and Indonesia. The largest deficits were recorded with Taiwan, Australia, South Korea, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Malaysia, Oman, Chile and Russia.

Latest Updates

China's trade surplus soared to USD 104.84 billion in December 2024, up from USD 75.31 billion in the same period a year earlier, surpassing expectations of USD 99.80 billion. It was the largest trade surplus since February, driven by a surge in exports. Sales jumped 10.7% yoy, exceeding forecasts of 7.3%, and accelerating from a 6.7% rise in November, as manufacturers front-loaded orders in anticipation of further tariffs from the incoming US administration. Meanwhile, imports unexpectedly rose by 1.0%, rebounding from a 3.9% fall in November and easily beating estimates of a 1.5% drop, as factory managers rushed to secure tech products in anticipation of tighter semiconductor export controls from the US. The trade surplus with the US narrowed to USD 33.5 billion in December from USD 34.9 billion in November. For the full year of 2024, the trade surplus was at USD 992.16 billion, with exports advancing 5.9% to USD 3.58 trillion while imports rose at a softer 1.1% to USD 2.59 trillion.