China's exports grew by 21.8% year-on-year in the first two months of 2026, up from 5.5% in 2025, well above market expectations. This marked the highest monthly YoY growth level since January 2022. As the data combines the first two months of the year, the strength can’t be attributed to the Lunar New Year effect. Many of last year's prevalent themes carried forward into 2026. By export destination, the US continued to see a sharp YoY decline, down -11.0%. The tariff impact remains in play, given the current higher tariff rates and last year's trade front-loading. The brighter side of this story is that the ... (full story)