China’s goods trade declined sharply in June compared to June 2022, according to figures released by China’s Ministry of Commerce. Exports were 14.5% lower than a year earlier; imports were 12.4% lower. The very large year-to-year drop in China-U.S. trade—especially China’s exports to the United States, which were down by 23% from June 2022—dominated this drop.
Trade between the world’s two largest economies is collapsing—a result of Washington’s insane decoupling policy, combined with the collapse of the world’s physical economy. China’s trade with ASEAN, now its largest trading regional partner, also declined slightly.
Overall, for the first seven months of 2023, China’s exports are reported down 5% from the same period of 2022; China’s imports for the first seven months are down 7.6% in the same comparison.
