Economic concerns intensify as China's exports and imports fall short of expectations in November.

• In November, China's exports and imports both failed to meet expectations. Exports increased by 6.7% in U.S. dollar terms from the previous year, while imports decreased by 3.9%.

According to data from China's customs authority, both exports and imports in U.S. dollar terms fell short of expectations in November. Exports rose by 6.7%, while imports decreased by 3.9% compared to the previous year.

Reuters' poll expectations of an 8.5% year on year growth for outbound shipments were not met, despite exports rising 12.7% in October, marking their highest growth since March 2023, according to LSEG data.

Analysts were surprised to find a decline of 3.9% instead of the expected growth of 0.3%.

According to customs data released Tuesday, the year-to-date exports in U.S. dollar term increased by 5.4% to $3.24 trillion, while imports rose by 1.2% to $2.36 trillion from the previous year.

Despite sluggish domestic consumption and a prolonged housing downturn, exports have been a bright spot for China's economy.

The November trade data was released a day after China's top leaders announced plans to increase monetary and fiscal stimulus to stimulate growth in the coming year, and also promised to make "unconventional counter-cyclical adjustments" to boost domestic consumption demand.

U.S. importers are likely to continue "front loading" Chinese purchases, resulting in strong export growth in early 2025, according to Erica Tay, director of macro research at Maybank. However, she warned that there could be a "fall-off in the second half" of next year as U.S. tariffs take effect.

The official purchasing managers' index in November rose to 50.3, indicating that manufacturing activity in the country expanded for a second consecutive month, thanks to Beijing's existing stimulus measures.

Despite remaining soft, domestic demand has not increased.

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