Beijing’s massive export machine remained resilient in March as two earlier bouts of US tariff increases began to take effect, but future months are expected to be far more tumultuous as US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal tariff” regime threatens to raise import duties to previously unthinkable levels.
Outbound merchandise shipments rose by 12.4 per cent from a year earlier to US$313.9 billion, compared to the 2.3 per cent growth recorded for January and February and the 3.53 per cent rise forecast in a poll of financial data provider Wind.
Imports sank by 4.3 per cent year-on-year in March after a 8.4 per cent slide in the first two months of the year, according to customs data released on Monday.
The reading was lower than Wind’s forecast of a 4.2 per cent decline, and led to a trade surplus of US$102.64 billion for March.
The updated figures arrived amid renewed US-China trade tensions, with US President Donald Trump having threatened new tariffs on Chinese goods of 145 per cent after a series of reciprocal increases from Beijing. This would have sent the effective tariff rate, factoring in those already in place, to an eye-watering 156 per cent.
