China’s first quarterly trade deficit in seven years may ease pressure on the world’s biggest exporter to allow faster appreciation of the yuan.
Asia’s largest economy had a deficit of $1.02 billion in the first three months of the year compared with a surplus of $13.9 billion a year earlier, the customs bureau said on its website today. Imports jumped 32.6 percent to a quarterly record of $400.7 billion, helped by stronger domestic demand and higher global commodity prices, the bureau said.

China’s trading partners, including the U.S., say faster yuan appreciation is needed to help address global imbalances that contributed to the financial crisis. Premier Wen Jiabao said last month exchange-rate reform must be gradual to maintain social stability, and that boosting domestic demand is the best way the nation can contribute.

“This is a sign that China’s rebalancing efforts are advancing more rapidly than many had thought and it will take some heat off the pressure for faster yuan gains,” said Shen Jianguang, a Hong Kong-based economist at Mizuho Securities Asia Ltd. He expects the trade surplus to drop to below $150 billion this year from $183 billion last year.

The trade surplus was $196 billion in 2009, down from a record $295 billion in 2008, customs data show. The gap will decline this year as exporters come under pressure from rising labor and raw material costs and imports are supported by strong domestic demand, Shen said.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-10/china-posts-unexpected-140...