News Summary

• Earlier this week, a major Chinese car industry group said the country is “certain” to have surpassed Japan to become the world’s largest car exporter last year, driven by strong demand in Russia and growing global appetite for EVs..
• Exports for the year as a whole fell for the first time since 2016 as global demand for Chinese-made goods (other than cars) slowed, according to customs data released on Friday..
• In December, exports rose 2.3% from the same month a year ago, marking the second straight month of growth and suggesting a slight improvement in the global appetite for Chinese goods..
• “Sluggish external demand has hit China’s exports.” He expects China will continue to face “difficulties” on export markets as global demand is likely to remain weak and “protectionism and unilateralism” hinder growth, he added..
• The country also registered a 69% surge in the total value of automobile exports last year, the highest among all categories..
• “Weak global growth and continued over-investment in China means that deflation risks will continue to hang over its economy for some time,” said analysts from Capital Economics on Friday..