Machinery surplus hits record

Private enterprises look to exports to cope with overcapacity

The machinery sector posted a record trade surplus of $79.1 billion last year, lifted by rapidly growing exports from private manufacturers, a senior official of the China Machinery Industry Federation said on Wednesday.

Facing weak domestic demand amid a slowing economy, private machinery companies looked actively for foreign customers, who bought $148.9 billion worth of products, up 14.35 percent year-on-year, according to data from the federation.