Strong growth in Chinese foreign trade in August thanks to AI boom and anticipation of Xi-Trump summit

Chinese foreign trade witnessed strong growth in August, with imports and exports rising, driven by increased global demand for technical products related to artificial intelligence, ahead of the upcoming meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his American counterpart, Donald Trump.

After recording a record trade surplus in 2025, Chinese trade continued to grow this year, largely supported by rising external demand for semiconductors, computing equipment and other products linked to the artificial intelligence boom.

The General Administration of Customs reported that exports rose by 25 percent year-on-year in August, accelerating from growth of 23.9 percent in July, but they were slightly lower than economists’ expectations of 25.9 percent in a Bloomberg survey.

Imports also rose by 28.2 percent year-on-year, compared to growth of 27.5 percent in July, but came below expectations for a 31 percent rise.

Nguyen Hoang Nam, an economist specializing in the Chinese economy at Capital Economics, said: “Chinese trade growth remained strong in August, as both exports and imports continued to grow at a rapid pace.”

But he pointed out that the momentum of imports declined after the seasonal adjustment, which reflects “continued weakness in domestic demand.”

Strong exports have been a major lifeline for the Chinese economy in recent months, in light of continued weakness in domestic activity.

Natix's chief economist for the Asia-Pacific region, Alicia Garcia Herrero, told Agence France-Presse that the recent improvement in imports appears more related to increased corporate spending on computing and electronics capabilities and investment in manufacturing than to a broad recovery in household consumption.

Data published last week showed that industrial activity contracted in August for the second month in a row, despite an increase in external demand.

Much of the strength of Chinese exports this year comes from demand related to the global artificial intelligence sector, along with the continued strength of other sectors, including electric cars, consumer goods and industrial equipment.

Customs data showed that the value of China's exports of computers and components increased by 49.4 percent during the period from January to August.

“China still relies on exporters to support its economy,” wrote Qiu Zhang, head of economics at Pinpoint Asset Management.

China's cumulative trade surplus until the end of August amounted to $805.5 billion, according to customs data, a number expected to exceed the record level recorded last year.

Increasing trade imbalances

But the widening trade imbalances with a number of major partners have also raised political concerns, as officials abroad believe that the influx of Chinese imports is putting pressure on local producers and crowding out competition.

Zhang wrote that the US government made clear during the G20 summit its concerns about these trade imbalances.

Chinese shipments to the United States rose 34.4 percent year on year in August, compared to a 17 percent increase in July.

These statements come before the upcoming summit between Xi and Trump in Washington this month, which is expected to be a decisive step in trade relations between the two countries.

The wave of global tariffs launched by the US President last year sparked new disturbances in trade relations between the United States and China.

The two countries had initially eased the high tariffs imposed by Washington and Beijing's response, following a move by China to significantly restrict flows of rare earth elements to the United States.

Herrero said that one of the US focuses during the Trump-Xi meeting this month will be “trying to prevent China from progressing in the field of artificial intelligence,” adding that the data shows that China continues to make progress in this field.

Referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Hoang Nam wrote that the share of Chinese shipments heading directly to the United States stabilized in August at about 10 percent, while the share destined for ASEAN countries remained high.

He added that China's trade surplus with the European Union and the United Kingdom remained "exceptionally large" in August, exacerbating existing trade tensions and raising the prospect of further protectionist measures in the region.