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China's exports rise 8pc in April, while imports are up 12pc

CHINA's exports grew by 8 per cent in April, year on year, while imports increased by 11.9 per cent, leaving the country with a trade surplus of US$38.05 billion for the month, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.

Imports expanded by 20.3 per cent in March, prompting the Ministry of Commerce to say that imports and exports are expected to stabilise and improve in the near future, adding that the Central Government anticipates foreign trade will face a better environment in 2017 compared with the past two years, reported Reuters.

Exports to the United States rose 11.7 per cent in April from a year earlier, while imports from the US were up 1.5 per cent. China's trade surplus with the US was $21.34 billion in April, up from $17.74 billion in March, according to data from China's Customs bureau.

This comes amid plans by the US Commerce Department to open investigations into possible dumping and subsidisation of imports of tool chests and cabinets from China and Vietnam.

As US President Donald Trump moves to put America's interest first and pull out of multilateral trade agreements, China has positioned itself as a supporter of free trade.

Finance leaders of Japan, China and South Korea last week agreed to resist all forms of protectionism in a trilateral meeting last Friday, taking a stronger stand than G20 major economies against the protectionist policies advocated by the Trump administration.