China’s exports fell 25.4 percent in dollar terms from a year earlier in February, following a drop of 11.2 percent in January, while the country’s imports plunged 13.8 percent — a larger-than-expected decline that was made worse by the business shutdown during the Lunar New Year holiday. Separately, yuan-denominated data showed that exports fell 20.6 percent in February and imports dropped 8.0 percent from a year ago.
According to Reuters, the export drop was the biggest since May 2009. The dismal trade data would further deepen concerns about the health of the world’s second-largest economy, where slowing economic growth, ballooning debt, drop in forex reserves and increase in capital outflows are already weighing on investor sentiment. Earlier this month, Moody’s Investors Service warned that it may lower the country’s debt rating, underscoring global concerns over China’s stuttering economy.
“Exports were very strong last year in February because the Lunar New Year started so late and much of the usual disruption from the holiday was pushed into March. So the implication is that we'll probably see a significant reversal and a stronger number next month,” Julian Evans-Prichard, China economist at Capital Economics in Singapore, told Reuters.
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