China reports biggest drop in exports since 2020

BEIJING (AFP) - China saw its biggest drop in exports last month since 2020, according to official figures released Tuesday, as the world's second-largest economy faces sluggish global demand and a domestic slowdown.

Sales of Chinese products to foreign markets fell by 14.5 percent year-on-year last month, shrinking for the third consecutive month, according to dollar-denominated figures published by China's customs authority.

This was their largest decline since a 17.2 percent drop in January-February 2020, when the Chinese economy came to a standstill in the early weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Apart from a brief rebound in March and April, exports from China have been in constant decline since October 2022.

The threat of recession in the United States and Europe, combined with high inflation, has contributed to weakening international demand for Chinese products in recent months.

Chinese exports had fallen by 12.4 percent year-on-year in June.