China’s exports surprise with small growth — but not enough to shake off trade slump

BEIJING — China’s exports unexpectedly ticked higher in November, while imports fell slightly from a year ago, according to customs agency data released Thursday. Exports in U.S. dollar terms rose by 0.5% from a year ago, contrary to expectations for a 1.1% decline, according to analysts polled by Reuters. Imports fell in U.S. dollar terms by 0.6%, missing the Reuters’ forecast for a 3.3% increase from a year ago. The muted change in trade did little to offset an overall decline by about 5% to 6% for China’s exports and imports for the first 11 months of 2023. Bruce Pang, chief economist and head of research for Greater China at JLL, attributed the uptick in exports to businesses’ strategy of…