HONG KONG — China\u2019s exports returned to growth in November following an unexpected contraction the month before, although shipments to the United States dropped nearly 29% from a year earlier in an eighth straight month of double-digit declines. <\/p>\n
Overall exports from China were 5.9% higher than last year in November in dollar terms, customs data released on Monday showed, at $330.3 billion, better than economists\u2019 estimates. That was an improvement from a 1.1% contraction in October<\/a>.<\/p>\n While exports from China to the U.S. have fallen for most of the year, shipments have surged to other destinations, including Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America.<\/p>\n China’s imports increased 1.9% in November, better than October\u2019s 1% growth, even though a persistent downturn in the property sector is still weighing on consumer spending and business investment.<\/p>\n A year-long trade truce<\/a> between China and the U.S. was reached at a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in late October in South Korea. The U.S. has lowered its tariffs on China, and China has promised to halt its export controls related to rare earths.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile the trade truce and the U.S.\u2019s tariff reductions should be a positive for Chinese exports, we are now entering a period of unfavorable base effects,\u201d ING Bank economists Lynn Song and Deepali Bhargava wrote in a report, referring to strong growth in exports ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s big tariff hikes after he returned to the White House. \u201cThis should keep trade growth modest.\u201d<\/p>\n Last month, China\u2019s factory activity contracted for an eighth straight month<\/a> according to an official survey, as economists said it was still early to determine whether there was a real rebound in external demand following the U.S.-China trade truce. <\/p>\n With exports still going strong, economists generally expect China to more or less meet its economic growth target of around 5% for this year.<\/p>\n