The Prague Post - China sales to US slump even as exports beat forecasts

EUR -
AED 4.133016
AFN 79.014964
ALL 98.31862
AMD 437.773181
ANG 2.028041
AOA 1029.611125
ARS 1251.855289
AUD 1.757365
AWG 2.028278
AZN 1.917126
BAM 1.956188
BBD 2.27115
BDT 136.667097
BGN 1.957015
BHD 0.424126
BIF 3346.233724
BMD 1.125258
BND 1.460277
BOB 7.772472
BRL 6.358049
BSD 1.124823
BTN 95.99718
BWP 15.25155
BYN 3.680997
BYR 22055.058879
BZD 2.259428
CAD 1.566056
CDF 3235.116973
CHF 0.935354
CLF 0.027388
CLP 1050.991307
CNY 8.130384
CNH 8.147347
COP 4784.788761
CRC 570.908121
CUC 1.125258
CUP 29.81934
CVE 110.286867
CZK 24.935346
DJF 200.293482
DKK 7.46036
DOP 66.183122
DZD 149.756373
EGP 56.958762
ERN 16.878872
ETB 150.919382
FJD 2.555122
FKP 0.847092
GBP 0.847505
GEL 3.100118
GGP 0.847092
GHS 14.790472
GIP 0.847092
GMD 80.45191
GNF 9740.931344
GTQ 8.651715
GYD 236.009453
HKD 8.752319
HNL 29.224002
HRK 7.533489
HTG 146.89782
HUF 404.826792
IDR 18607.661882
ILS 3.992618
IMP 0.847092
INR 96.074256
IQD 1473.603486
IRR 47387.433667
ISK 146.914045
JEP 0.847092
JMD 178.79545
JOD 0.79826
JPY 163.330066
KES 145.386217
KGS 98.404068
KHR 4502.852769
KMF 487.764367
KPW 1012.925798
KRW 1575.676432
KWD 0.345139
KYD 0.937357
KZT 580.499938
LAK 24314.604801
LBP 100782.086532
LKR 336.073647
LRD 224.962604
LSL 20.458156
LTL 3.322595
LVL 0.680658
LYD 6.164222
MAD 10.405863
MDL 19.278223
MGA 5060.958465
MKD 61.534193
MMK 2362.75524
MNT 4023.127953
MOP 9.011706
MRU 44.812885
MUR 51.435748
MVR 17.340245
MWK 1950.369369
MXN 21.946483
MYR 4.835229
MZN 71.903861
NAD 20.459702
NGN 1811.046958
NIO 41.391333
NOK 11.667205
NPR 153.595088
NZD 1.909774
OMR 0.433205
PAB 1.124813
PEN 4.086719
PGK 4.66876
PHP 62.416374
PKR 316.774807
PLN 4.23953
PYG 8992.783008
QAR 4.104414
RON 5.118577
RSD 117.233244
RUB 93.958644
RWF 1616.870287
SAR 4.220687
SBD 9.39686
SCR 15.963385
SDG 675.715336
SEK 10.919375
SGD 1.46018
SHP 0.884276
SLE 25.576714
SLL 23596.081583
SOS 642.82174
SRD 40.798425
STD 23290.570909
SVC 9.841951
SYP 14633.498546
SZL 20.448873
THB 37.125708
TJS 11.641705
TMT 3.949656
TND 3.385971
TOP 2.635468
TRY 43.601462
TTD 7.641447
TWD 34.013207
TZS 3035.387599
UAH 46.726103
UGX 4116.816245
USD 1.125258
UYU 47.019323
UZS 14487.872525
VES 102.509005
VND 29232.517709
VUV 135.84037
WST 3.117633
XAF 656.081251
XAG 0.034527
XAU 0.000337
XCD 3.041067
XDR 0.808666
XOF 656.087083
XPF 119.331742
YER 275.127045
ZAR 20.483867
ZMK 10128.668579
ZMW 29.610608
ZWL 362.332651
  • RBGPF

    2.8600

    65.86

    +4.34%

  • CMSC

    -0.0500

    22.11

    -0.23%

  • RIO

    -0.8400

    59.18

    -1.42%

  • BCC

    2.4800

    89.58

    +2.77%

  • NGG

    -2.3900

    70.18

    -3.41%

  • JRI

    -0.0760

    12.95

    -0.59%

  • SCS

    0.5700

    10.48

    +5.44%

  • RYCEF

    0.4300

    10.6

    +4.06%

  • VOD

    -0.1500

    9.25

    -1.62%

  • BTI

    -1.1500

    43.3

    -2.66%

  • BCE

    0.9800

    22.23

    +4.41%

  • RELX

    -0.8100

    54.06

    -1.5%

  • CMSD

    -0.0800

    22.33

    -0.36%

  • GSK

    -0.3000

    36.87

    -0.81%

  • BP

    0.4600

    28.59

    +1.61%

  • AZN

    -2.7700

    67.3

    -4.12%

China sales to US slump even as exports beat forecasts
China sales to US slump even as exports beat forecasts / Photo: STR - AFP

China sales to US slump even as exports beat forecasts

China said Friday sales to the United States slumped last month while its total exports topped forecasts, as Beijing fought a gruelling trade war with its superpower rival.

Text size:

Trade between the world's two largest economies has nearly skidded to a halt since US President Donald Trump imposed various rounds of levies on China that began as retaliation for Beijing's alleged role in a devastating fentanyl crisis.

Tariffs on many Chinese products now reach as high as 145 percent -- with cumulative duties on some goods soaring to a staggering 245 percent.

Beijing has responded with 125 percent tariffs on imports of US goods, along with other measures targeting American firms.

Against that backdrop, analysts polled by Bloomberg had expected exports to rise just 2.0 percent year-on-year last month.

But they beat expectations, coming in at 8.1 percent.

However, exports to the United States -- one of China's top trading partners -- fell 17.6 percent month-on-month, data showed.

"The damage of the US tariffs has not shown up in the trade data in April," Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, said in a note.

"This may be partly due to transshipment through other countries, and partly because of trade contracts that were signed before the tariffs were announced," he added.

"I expect trade data will weaken in the next few months gradually."

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are set to meet Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Switzerland on Saturday and Sunday, marking the first talks between the superpowers since Trump unveiled his tariffs.

April imports also beat expectations, dropping 0.2 percent, compared with the 6.0 percent slide analysts had estimated.

Purchases from overseas were also being closely watched as a key gauge of consumer demand in China, which has remained sluggish.

Policymakers this week eased key monetary policy tools in a bid to ramp up domestic activity.

Those included cuts to a key interest rate and moves to lower the amount banks must hold in reserve in a bid to boost lending.

A persistent crisis in the property sector -- once a key driver of growth -- also remains a drag on the economy.

In an effort to help the sector, Pan also said the bank would cut the rate for first-time home purchases with loan terms over five years to 2.6 percent, from 2.85 percent.

The moves represent some of China's most sweeping steps to boost the economy since September.

But analysts pointed to a continued lack of actual stimulus funds needed to get the economy back on track.

F.Vit--TPP