China's Exports Surge

The growth marks the highest monthly year-over-year growth level since January 2022. This surge cannot be solely attributed to the Lunar New Year effect, as the data combines the first two months of the year. Key exports such as semiconductors (72.6%), autos (67.1%), and ships (52.8%) experienced incredibly strong growth at the start of 2026. Hi-tech exports also surged, increasing 26.9% year-over-year, signaling China's growing prominence in high-value sectors. ASEAN remains China's largest trading partner, with trade hitting over 1.24 trillion yuan, a 20.3% increase. Trade with the EU also saw a significant rise, reaching 998.94 billion yuan, up 19.9%. However, trade with the United States declined by 16.9% year-on-year, totaling 609.71 billion yuan. This decrease is attributed to the impact of tariffs. Despite this, strong growth in other markets offset the US decline. Private firms played a significant role in driving foreign trade growth, recording 4.51 trillion yuan in trade, a 22.8% year-on-year increase. This was followed by foreign-invested enterprises at 2.2 trillion yuan (up 15.3%) and state-owned enterprises at 1 trillion yuan (up 7.4%).