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China beats expectations - $20.4bn surplus

China recorded a trade surplus for May of US$20.4 billion (up from $19.3 billion), which beat the market's expectations, although export growth slowed a little.

There is a lot of noise and scepticism around data from China, so it is best to observe trends rather than month-to-month detail.

There was possibly some adjustment to previously overstated exports, but the trend for both exports and imports seems to suggest ~7% growth.

As a major exporter of resources to China, Australia's economy wants to see continued strong growth in China's trade and 7% growth plus is very strong.

One suspects that a little of the slowdown in exports was related to a clampdown on what is at best "window dressing" and at worst is fake invoicing.

Growth is great, of course, but only when it's real!

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