China’s customs agency reported on Tuesday that the country’s August trade surplus reached $119.1 billion, a jump from July’s $112.5 billion mark, as exports grew 25% year-over-year and imports rose 28.2%.
Imports missed forecasts, though. Economists polled by Reuters had expected 30% growth. Domestic demand appears weaker than expected, even with exports booming. Beijing continues to face pressure to lean less on exports and more on its own consumers.
Beijing ran a $29.18 billion surplus with Washington in August, up from $28.03 billion in July. Chinese exporters sent 34.4% more to American buyers year-over-year, reaching $42.5 billion — a faster clip than the country’s overall export growth. A new 12.5% US tariff took effect in late July, replacing a temporary 10% duty that had expired, and manufacturers rushed shipments out ahead of that increase.
Sponsored · Selkirk Copper Mines
Related: China’s Central Bank Buys the Most Gold Since October 2023
Beijing released these figures weeks before Trump is due to sit down with Xi Jinping. The meeting is expected in late September, but China has yet to lock in a firm date.
China posted its largest-ever annual surplus last year, $1.2 trillion. It has already logged $805.51 billion in cumulative surplus through August this year. If that pace holds, 2026 could match last year’s mark. Buyers worldwide have been snapping up Chinese semiconductors amid the global AI infrastructure buildout, and Chinese manufacturers are also seeing their usual seasonal pickup in pre-holiday orders.
