China 2026 trade surplus passed $1 trillion in October

Recent data shows Chinese trade surplus passing $1 trillion in October, crossing the milestone even earlier than it did last year during a record-breaking surge in overseas shipments.

China, the world’s second-largest economy, had its exports surge in recent months in correlation with global increased demand for AI-related products including computer chips, data center servers and networking equipment.

The trade boom has proven to be a critical lifeline for the Chinese economy which has been wracked with economic woes in its once booming realty and property sector.

Chinese exports rose 35.2 percent year-on-year to $412.3 billion last month while imports expanded 41.6 percent to $307.1 billion, according to the Chinese General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The difference brought China’s total trade surplus during the first 10 months to a towering $1.04 trillion, according to the GAC, and putting it well on the way to surpass the record $1.2 trillion surplus achieved last year in November.

The figures come ahead of a meeting between President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in China next week.