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China’s exports grew at the slowest pace in six months in August, as trade tensions with the US continued to weigh on the country’s economic outlook.
Exports added 4.4 per cent in dollar terms last month on a year earlier, according to data released by China’s customs administration on Monday, missing forecasts in a Reuters poll and trailing 7.2 per cent growth in July.
Imports rose 1.3 per cent, also at a slower pace than expected and less than July’s figure of 4.1 per cent.
While the exports reading was the lowest since the beginning of 2025, it also adds to sustained growth in the months following the eruption of a full-blown trade war with the US in April.
A series of truces since then have temporarily reduced sky-high tariff levels, but the world’s two largest economies have yet to carve out a longer-term agreement on trade.
Beijing, which is facing concerns over the strength of consumer momentum domestically, has relied heavily on exports to power growth in recent years, even as its high trade surpluses have put pressure on trading partners.
China’s exports to the US fell 33 per cent in August, following sharp falls in recent months, but its exports to other regions including south-east Asia have increased, adding to scrutiny of potential rerouting of goods. Exports to south-east Asia rose 22.5 per cent in August.
Zichun Huang, chief China economist at Capital Economics, said the lower export growth rate in August was driven by a higher base rate a year earlier.
But she added: “With the temporary boost from the US-China trade truce fading and the US raising tariffs on shipments rerouted via other countries, exports are likely to come under pressure in the near term.”
