China has seen a continuation of its recent strong trade performance in May 2018, despite ongoing trade tensions with the US.

During the last month, exports rose 12.6 per cent from a year earlier, which was higher than the ten per cent estimate given by analysts polled by Reuters. This figure was roughly equal to the revised 12.7 per cent figure for April.

Meanwhile, import growth had been expected to slow to 18.7 per cent in May, compared with 21.5 per cent one month earlier. In fact, it ended up increasing further to 26 per cent. This strong performance reflects sustained demand at home and abroad.

As a result of these trends, China posted a trade surplus of $24.92 billion (€21.21 billion) for the month. Analysts had forecast the surplus would increase to $31.9 billion in May, up from $28.38 billion in April.

The current performance will be taken as good news by the Chinese government as they continue to work towards an amicable resolution to the current trade conflict with the US, which has the potential to disrupt Chinese shipments and supply chains.