China's trade surplus narrowed in December as exports underwhelm

Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images Chinese trade data for December has largely underwhelmed, with the value of exports contracting sharply while growth in imports slowed. According to China’s Customs Bureau, the value of exports fell by 6.1% year-on-year in USD-denominated terms, larger than the 3.5% contraction expected and a reversal from the 0.1% growth reported in the 12 months to November. Import growth also slowed, increasing by 3.1% from December 2015, down on the 6.7% pace reported previously...