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(Yicai Global) April 12 -- China's trade surplus widened massively in the first quarter, partly spurred by declining imports from the US and strengthening exports in the month of March.
The positive balance of trade increased 71 percent from a year ago to USD76.3 billion in the first three months of this year, China's customs revealed today. The value of exports rose 1.4 percent to USD551.76 billion, while that of imports dipped nearly 5 percent to USD475.4 billion.
In March, exports increased a whopping 14.2 percent to USD198.7 billion, while imports dropped 7.6 percent to USD166 billion. The strong data is in stark contrast with the previous month when exports fell almost 21 percent.
The value of China's exports to the US declined 3.7 percent to CNY291.4 billion(USD43.49 billion) in the first quarter. Imports from the States fell 28.3 percent to CNY193.4 billion. In March, the tally of US-bound exports increased 0.1 percent to CNY291.4 billion while that of imports from the States fell 21 percent to CNY76.4 billion.
Editor: Emmi Laine