Data raise rebound doubts (2)

Trade with the US, China's second-largest trade partner, rose by 8.2 percent in the same period, slower than the 9.1 percent increase in the first 10 months. The first 11 months saw China-Japan trade decelerate by 2.9 percent year-on-year from a 2.1 percent drop in the first 10 months.

China's foreign trade during the January-to-November period expanded by 5.8 percent from a year earlier as exports increased by 7.3 percent and imports by 4.1 percent, yielding a trade surplus of $199.54 billion, the customs said.

The whole year of 2012 will see China's trade grow by 6 or 7 percent while the trade surplus will be between $220 billion and $230 billion, Wang said.

The government has targeted growth of 10 percent for foreign trade this year, a figure that officials have admitted will be hard to achieve.

Chen Hufei, a researcher at Bank of Communications Co Ltd, agreed, saying that the trade surplus this year will "significantly expand compared from a year earlier, and renminbi appreciation will be further pressed in the short term".

Wang said renminbi appreciation in November has eroded the competitive edge of Chinese exporters.

"It had been a tough year for all manufacturers that rely on exports, which have made much fewer orders with the decline in demand," said Zhang Beilei, owner of Wenzhou Gaotian Shoe Co Ltd.

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