China's April trade rebounds, with imports, exports both up

China's trade rose marginally in April, rebounding from the sharp declines in March and helping China's economy to stabilize, data from the General Administration showed Thursday.

Exports increased 0.9 percent from a year earlier to US$188.5 billion last month, reversing the fall of 6.6 percent in March. Imports expanded 0.8 percent to US$170.1 billion, also up from the 11.3 percent slump a month earlier.

They created a trade surplus of US$18.4 percent in April, more than the surplus of US$7.7 billion in March.

"China's export growth came in higher than expected, suggesting that the effect of a high base inflated by the round-tripping trade early last year has gradually faded," said Zhou Hao, an economist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

"The imports also beat market expectations, reflecting that the concerns over China's commodity demand are overdone," Zhou said.

Components showed that China's exports to the European Union and the United States jumped 15.1 percent and 12 percent, respectively, in April.

China's economy has been stabilizing after the State Council, China's cabinet, carried out measures over the past month such as lowering reserve requirements for rural banks and speeding up railway construction to support growth and employment.

In the first quarter, China's gross domestic product expanded 7.4 percent, the weakest in 18 months.