By Bloomberg News
(Bloomberg) -- China’s trade surplus widened and exports
recovered last month, offering support to a weakening currency
that has roiled global markets this year.
The nation’s trade balance widened to $60 billion, taking
the full-year tally to $594.5 billion, helping offset capital
outflows that have pressured the yuan. Exports slid 1.4 percent
in U.S. dollar terms in December from a year earlier, while
rising when counted in the local currency.
The Australian dollar, Chinese stocks and S&P 500 Index
futures climbed after the report. China’s tumbling shares and
weakening currency have shaken global markets in 2016, eroding
confidence in an economy that’s struggling to stabilize after it
likely grew last year at the slowest pace in a quarter of a
century.
"Despite market turmoil, the growth recovery is on track
thanks to previous easing measures taking effect," said Daili
Wang, a Singapore-based economist at Roubini Global Economics
LLC. "The recovery is still fragile."
As policy makers continue to prioritize stability, Wang
doesn’t expect the yuan to depreciate again as much as it has in
recent weeks. Stronger-than-expected export growth doesn’t
justify further depreciation, Wang said.
Exports climbed 2.3 percent in yuan terms from a year
earlier, the customs administration said Wednesday, compared
with a 3.7 percent drop in November. Imports extended a stretch
of declines to 14 months, falling 4 percent in yuan terms,
compared with a 5.6 percent drop a month earlier. In U.S. dollar
terms, imports fell 7.6 percent from a year earlier, less than
the 11 percent drop forecast by economists.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 1.8 percent as of 11:36
a.m. Hong Kong time, halting a seven-day drop that marked its
longest run of losses since August. The yuan strengthened in
Hong Kong’s offshore market, where it was headed for the biggest
five-day advance on record.
A sustained pick up in exports may relieve some of the
pressure on the yuan to weaken, countering capital outflows and
concern over the economy’s slowdown.
Recovery Signs