China's export growth shows 'rising role' in global trade: UK newspaper

LONDON -- The continuing growth in China's exports highlights the country's "rising role" in global trade amid the coronavirus pandemic, a major British newspaper reported Saturday.

The October figures have shown the latest sign that China's "rapid economic recovery from coronavirus is strengthening its role in global trade", the Financial Times (FT) reported.

China's foreign trade sustained its upward momentum in October with notable growth and improved structure, the country's official data showed Saturday.

China's foreign trade expanded 4.6 percent year on year in October, with exports jumping 7.6 percent year on year and imports climbing 0.9 percent in yuan terms, China's General Administration of Customs (GAC) said in a statement.

The FT reported that China's exports have "flourished" during the COVID-19 crisis, with growth over recent months supported by international demand for its medical equipment and electronics products.

"Trade activity has contributed to China's recovery from the pandemic, at a time when other economies are still grappling with its impact," said the report.

The FT also noted that China's recovery has been fuelled by strong industrial growth and and booming construction.

Domestic consumption, with retail goods data returning to growth in September this year, will play an increasingly role in job creation in the country, it added.

"The consumption sector could be a source of job creation that gradually replaces the job pool in the manufacturing sector," Iris Pang, chief economist for Greater China at ING, a multinational banking and financial services corporation, was quoted as saying.

China's economic recovery picked up steam in the third quarter as activities normalized amid effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Chinese government's sweeping efforts to stimulate demand and consumption, according to official data.

China's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 4.9 percent year on year in Q3, faster than the 3.2-percent growth seen in Q2, data from China's National Bureau of Statistics showed.