Investing.com - China’s trade data in January came in better than expected as front-loading ahead of the Lunar New Year boosted sales, customs data showed on Thursday.
January exports unexpectedly grew 9.1% from a year earlier, compared to expectations for a drop of 3.2%, according to data from China’s General Administration of Customs.
Imports fell 1.5%, much less than the expected 10% fall and narrowing from December’s 7.6% drop.
That left the country with a trade surplus of $39.16 billion for the month, better than forecasts of $33.5 billion.
Analysts said the positive data was likely due to seasonal factors and business distortions caused by the long Lunar New Year holidays, which began on February 5 compared to February 15 in 2018. Data in the first two months of the year must be treated with caution, analysts warned.
Mixo Das, Asia equity strategist at J.P. Morgan, told CNBC that he would not read too much into the trade data released today due to the presence of distortions like the national holidays, cyclical trends and ongoing structural changes.
Das told CNBC he still expected China's economy to bottom in the first half of the year.
Data today also showed China’s trade surplus with the United States narrowed to $27.3 billion in January, from $29.87 billion in December.
That better-than-expected data point came as Chinese and U.S. officials held their latest round of trade negotiations in Beijing this week. Citing unnamed sources, the South China Morning Posts reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Friday.
The two sides are trying to reach an agreement before March 1. U.S. President Donald Trump has previously warned he might double the rate of tariffs on about $200 billions of Chinese goods if the deadline passes without a deal.