BEIJING (AP) —
China’s wholesale trade growth accelerated in January, possibly helping to ease
fears about a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy that could dent global
products demand.
Imports rose 10
percent to $107.2 billion, up from January’s 8.3 percent growth, wholesale
trade data showed Wednesday. Exports rose 10.6 percent to $126.7 billion, more
than double the previous month’s 4.3 percent expansion.
Growth was “much
stronger than we had expected,” said RBS economist Louis Kuijs in a report.
“This should make markets more relaxed about both global products demand and
demand in China’s own economy.”
Last year’s
economic growth of 7.7 percent was stronger than the United States, Japan or
Europe but tied 2012 for China’s weakest annual performance since 1999.
Growth looks set to
slow further this year. That raises the risk of job losses and social tension,
adding to pressure on communist leaders to shore up an expansion as they try to
carry out sweeping promises of economic reforms.
Stronger exports
could help to ease concern about employment in industries that employ millions
of workers. That would reduce the need for a new economic stimulus, which would
set back plans to reduce reliance on state-led investment.
China’s wholesale
trade figures early in the year are often volatile because companies rush to
fill orders before shutting down for the Lunar New Year, which falls at
different points in January or February each year.
This year’s data
were expected to be unusually weak because during the comparison period a year
earlier exporters were believed to be inflating sales figures as an excuse to
evade currency controls and bring extra money into China for investment.
“With these factors
holding back export growth, the performance in January, at least first glance,
looks even better than the headline expansion suggests,” said Julian
Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics in a report.
The country’s global
products wholesale trade surplus narrowed by 33 percent compared with a year
earlier to $19.5 billion.
Its politically
sensitive surplus with the United States fell 34 percent to $9.2 billion. The
surplus with the 27-nation European Union, China’s biggest trading partner,
narrowed by 25 percent to $9.2 billion.
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