BEIJING (Reuters) – China needs to “try every method” to stabilise its exports to developed countries, state media reported Premier Li Qiang as saying on Friday, signalling that the impact a global slowdown could have on the domestic economy remains a key concern.
Trade flows to and from the world’s second-largest economy continued to trend downward when the government last released data in March, with exports down 6.8% year-on-year and imports 10.2% weaker for the January-February period.
Pragmatic and effective measures will be introduced at the opportune time to further stabilise market expectations, Premier Li was also reported as saying during a cabinet meeting on Friday, including taking steps to guide enterprises to deepen their exploration of developing countries and regional markets.
Other Asian exporters such as South Korea and Vietnam have also seen their exports decline in the first few months of 2023, showing that China is not alone in its export woes.
A 26.5% plunge in China’s imports of semiconductors for January-February suggests a shrunken market for consumer electronics exports, as high inflation in the United States and Europe continues to dampen demand from China.
China will next release trade data on April 13.
(Reporting by Joe Cash; Editing by David Goodman and Tomasz Janowski)
