China’s exports rose 25% in August from a year earlier, while imports increased 28.2%, customs figures released on September 8 showed. The country still sold far more goods abroad than it bought, recording a monthly trade surplus of about $119.1 billion.
The surplus, the difference between goods exports and imports, increased from $112.5 billion in July. Both trade flows grew faster than a month earlier in US dollar terms, according to RTHK’s report on the customs release.
Technology products helped support the expansion. But the headline growth rates measure the money changing hands, rather than the number of products shipped, and the strength was uneven across industries.
How faster imports can coexist with a large surplus
Exports reached roughly $401.4 billion and imports $282.4 billion in August, according to the figures reported by the South China Morning Post. That leaves a substantial gap even after the faster percentage increase in purchases from abroad.
Percentage growth depends on the starting amount. A smaller percentage increase in a larger export base can add more money than a bigger percentage increase in a smaller import base. Faster import growth therefore does not automatically eliminate a surplus.
The comparisons also cover different periods. The 25% and 28.2% growth rates compare August with August 2025. The increase in the surplus from July to August compares two consecutive months. They should not be read as one calculation.
Technology trade is growing faster than traditional exports
Xinhua’s more detailed account of the customs figures shows a clear sector divide. In January through August, exports of mechanical and electrical products rose 21.9% in yuan terms, while exports of labor-intensive products slipped 0.6%.
Integrated circuits, the semiconductor chips used in electronic equipment, were particularly strong. Their export value increased 95.4% over those eight months. Chip imports also rose sharply, by 61.7%, illustrating China’s role as both a buyer and seller within electronics supply chains.
China Minsheng Bank chief economist Wen Bin told Xinhua that investment linked to artificial intelligence was supporting both volumes and prices across the semiconductor supply chain. That is an analyst’s explanation of the momentum, rather than a measure of how much of August’s export growth came from AI.
For suppliers, this is a mixed picture. Strong demand for chips and electrical equipment can support orders, while businesses making more labor-intensive goods may experience little of the same lift.
Currency and prices affect the headline numbers
The official government summary puts August export growth at 18.6% and import growth at 21.7% when measured in yuan. Those figures describe the same trade flows as the higher dollar growth rates, using a different currency.
Exchange-rate movements change how the values translate between currencies. Changes in product prices and the mix of goods sold also affect trade values. A 25% rise in export revenue cannot, on its own, establish a 25% increase in physical shipments.
Nor does the goods surplus measure exporters’ profit. Companies still have production, financing and transport costs, and the customs totals do not show what happened to their margins.
The expansion reaches beyond China
China’s trade with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, rose 20.6% in yuan terms during the first eight months of the year, Xinhua reported. Regional trade can include components moving between factories before finished products reach customers elsewhere.
As we explained in our coverage of Southeast Asian trade, participation in regional supply chains can coexist with heavy dependence on customers outside the region.
Europe provides another view of the imbalance. We reported that EU goods imports outpaced exports in the second quarter, leaving the bloc with a quarterly deficit. China’s August figures cover a different period, but both releases show why rising trade and balanced trade are separate developments.
