China’s December Exports Show Milder Slump

China’s customs administration reported on Friday that the country’s exports and imports dropped less than anticipated in December, resulting in growth for the entire year of 2022.

Exports decreased by 9.9% in December compared to the previous year, which was a milder decline than the 10% drop forecast by a Reuters poll. Imports also decreased by 7.5% year-on-year, which was better than the 9.8% decrease predicted by Reuters.

Despite the strong performance of exports in supporting China’s economy in recent years, economists anticipate a decrease in demand from the U.S. and Europe in the future.

According to Wind Information, China’s exports began to decline year-over-year in October for the first time since May 2020. The customs agency reported that for the entirety of 2022, China’s exports increased by 7.7% and imports by 1.1%.

Furthermore, official figures show that cross-border e-commerce between China and other countries grew by 9.8% in 2022, reaching 2.11 trillion yuan ($301.42 billion), with direct-to-consumer exports growing by 11.7% year-on-year.

However, this growth rate is slower compared to 2021, when China’s cross-border e-commerce rose by 15% to 1.98 trillion yuan ($311.5 billion), and exports surged by 24.5%.

Additionally, imports from the EU and the US decreased in 2022, while imports from ASEAN slightly increased.