China’s imports surged by the fastest pace in a decade last month as domestic demand increased. China’s total foreign trade grew 26.6% year-on-year to CNY3.15 trillion in April. During the January-April period, the country’s imports jumped 22.7% year-on-year to CNY5.3 trillion while exports soared 33.8% to CNY6.32 trillion, sending the trade surplus up 149.7% to CNY1.02 trillion, the China Daily reports.

In U.S. dollar terms, China’s trade volume grew 37% year-on-year to USD485 billion in April, marking the 11^th consecutive month that the country’s foreign trade achieved positive growth. Total trade volume in April surged 3.5% compared with that of March. It also gained 29.6% compared with the same period in 2019, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs. Exports jumped 32.3% year-on-year to USD263.9 billion, beating market expectations, while imports surged 43.1% year-on-year to USD221.1 billion. The trade surplus dwindled 4.7% in dollar terms to USD42.9 billion compared with the same period last year. In the first four months, China’s total trade volume expanded 38.2% year-on-year to USD1.79 trillion, with exports and imports surging 44% and 31.9%, respectively. Analysts expect that the export machine will remain robust in the second quarter as the coronavirus outbreak resumes in some export-oriented countries, such as India, the Global Times reports. 

In other trade-related news, Zhang Xiangchen, a Chinese Vice Minister of Commerce, has been appointed one of four Deputy Director Generals of the World Trade Organization (WTO). According to a report issued by the WTO, China’s share of global imports and exports reached 11.5% and 14.7% in 2020. China was the only economy in the world to achieve positive commodity trade growth last year.