In the first ten months of 2026, China accumulated a goods trade surplus of $1.04 trillion. The country crossed the trillion mark already in October—a month earlier than last year. The main growth factor was exports, supported by global demand for technological products, including equipment for the development of artificial intelligence.

This was reported by Nikkei Asia and The New York Times citing statistics from China's General Administration of Customs published on November 10.

The surplus for January–October exceeded the figure for the same period last year by about 8%. At the end of ten months of 2025, it was about $964.8 billion. In total, last year China set a record with a trade surplus of about $1.2 trillion.

In October, Chinese exports increased by 35.2% year-on-year, to $412.3 billion. Growth slowed slightly compared with September's 36.3%, but remained higher than economists' expectations.

Imports grew even faster—by 41.6%, to $307.1 billion. As a result, the monthly trade surplus shrank to $105.3 billion, compared with $133.5 billion in September.

According to Chinese customs data cited by Xinhua, China's total trade volume for ten months reached 44.81 trillion yuan, an increase of 20% compared with the same period of 2025.

Exports in yuan terms rose by 17.6%, and imports by 23.6%.

An important source of export growth was the technology sector. Over ten months, shipments of integrated circuits abroad increased by 101.9%, and memory components by 132.5%.

The global expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure supports demand for Chinese electronic components, equipment, and other high-tech products.

In addition, foreign sales of Chinese electric vehicles, batteries, and solar panels are growing. Combined exports of these three categories from January to October increased by 46.5%.

At the same time, the significant excess of exports over imports exacerbates China's contradictions with its trading partners. The United States and the European Union are concerned about the increase in supplies of Chinese products, particularly automobiles and industrial equipment.

Economists also point to the dependence of the Chinese economy on external demand. Amid problems in the real estate sector and subdued domestic consumption, exports remain one of the important factors of the country's economic growth.

At the current pace of foreign trade, China may exceed the record annual surplus of 2025. However, further dynamics will depend on global demand for technological products, trade restrictions, and the state of the global economy.

Based on materials from: Nikkei Asia, The New York Times, Xinhua