Investing.com - China reported on Monday that its overall trade surplus in May was much more than what analysts previously forecasted.
The surplus was $41.65 billion in May, China’s General Administration of Customs said, more than double the expected $20.5 billion.
The data also showed the country’s exports unexpectedly rose last month, while imports came in worse than expected.
The better-than-expected data came despite expectations that the Sino-U.S. trade war would continue to drag on.
Over the weekend, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Washington would slap more tariffs on Chinese goods if trade talks do not progress well. More action from China are required to hold off new tariffs, he added.
U.S. President and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are expected to meet later this month during the G-20 meeting in Japan.
Yi Gang, governor of the People’s Bank of China, said last week that there is room for monetary policy adjustment if the trade war with the U.S. worsens.
China’s trade surplus with the U.S. rose to $26.89 billion in May from $21.01 billion in April, today’s data showed.