China's export growth slumped in April to its lowest level in almost two years, customs data showed on Monday.
China's export growth slumped in April to its lowest level in almost two years, customs data showed MondayChina's export growth slumped in April to its lowest level in almost two years, customs data showed Monday, as a Covid resurgence shuttered factories, sparked transport curbs and caused congestion at key ports.
Beijing has persisted with a strict zero-Covid policy involving lockdowns and mass testing, but the economic costs are mounting as manufacturing hubs and supply chains atrophy under gruelling restrictions.While this was above analysts' expectations of 2.7 percent growth according to a Bloomberg poll, it marked the lowest rate since June 2020.
Customs spokesman Li Kuiwen tried to strike an upbeat note on Monday saying the economy still has room to make a turnaround and that its"positive fundamentals" remain unchanged."Export growth could get worse in the next couple of months due to the pandemic and China's stringent Covid containment measures, falling external demand, and loss of orders to other regions," Nomura chief China economist Ting Lu told AFP.
In April, China's biggest city Shanghai was almost entirely sealed off as it became the epicentre of the country's worst coronavirus surge, with many factories halting production and trucker shortage causing goods to pile up at its port."Lockdowns in large cities like Shanghai and rising input costs are major reasons" behind the underwhelming trade figures, analyst Zhaopeng Xing of ANZ Research said.
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