China’s April exports jump 8.1% to beat estimates despite U.S. tariffs

China’s exports surged in April even as shipments to the U.S. plunged as businesses bore the brunt of prohibitive U.S. tariffs that kicked in last month. Imports narrowed declines as Beijing stepped up stimulus.

Exports jumped 8.1% last month in U.S. dollar terms from a year earlier, according to data released by customs authority on Friday, sharply beating with Reuters’ poll estimates of a 1.9% rise.

Imports slumped by 0.2% in April from a year earlier, compared with the economists’ expectations of a 5.9% drop.

China’s outbound shipments to the U.S. plunged over 21% in April year on year, while imports dropped nearly 14%, official data showed.

The surge in overall exports could be partly due to transshipment through third countries and contracts that were signed before the tariffs were announced, Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint asset management said in a note.

Zhang expects trade data to weaken gradually in the next few months.

Shipments from China had clocked a 12.4% year-on-year growth in March, as businesses rushed to export goods to avoid higher tariffs. Imports, however, had dropped by a more than expected 4.3% from a year earlier, underscoring Beijing’s challenge of reviving domestic demand.

U.S. President Donald Trump has placed tariffs of 145% on all imports from China, prompting it to retaliate with tariffs of 125% on American imports. So far, both sides have sought to blunt the economic impact of triple-digit levies by granting exemptions on certain critical products.

The number of container vessels from China to the U.S. had dropped dramatically toward the end of April, Raymond Yeung, chief economist for Greater China at ANZ Bank said in a note Thursday.

Chinese government has sought to help exporters divert sales to the home market, a move that could drive the economy into deeper deflation.

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