Beijing China’s trade surplus ballooned to more than $1 trillion in October, official data showed on Tuesday (November 10, 2026), reaching the milestone even earlier than last year’s record-breaking sum. Exports from the world’s second-largest economy have surged in recent months, driven in part by soaring global demand for artificial intelligence-related products including computer chips, data centre servers and networking equipment.
Top U.S., China officials raise trade ‘concerns’ as APEC approaches Top U.S., China officials raise trade ‘concerns’ as APEC approaches Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer held a call with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and discussed economic and trade commitments over the last year Top U.S., China officials raise trade ‘concerns’ as APEC approaches storyline 1 The trade boom has offered Beijing a key economic lifeline as domestic activity is weighed by longstanding woes in the once-roaring property sector.
The figures come ahead of another high-stakes meeting between President Xi Jinping and U.S. counterpart Donald Trump at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in China next week. Exports jumped 35.2% year-on-year to $412.3 billion last month, according to the General Administration of Customs, while imports expanded 41.6% to $307.1 billion. Trump says likely to meet Putin, Xi at China APEC summit Trump says likely to meet Putin, Xi at China APEC summit U.S.
President Donald Trump indicated to reporters
President Donald Trump indicated to reporters that a deal on the Russia-Ukraine war, the Iran issue and nuclear arms control would be on the agenda Trump says likely to meet Putin, Xi at China APEC summit storyline 1 The figures brought China’s total trade surplus during the first 10 months to a towering $1.04 trillion, according to the GAC. “Exporters have been the key driving force behind China’s economy this year,” Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote.
“I expect they will continue to perform well in the foreseeable future,” he said, adding that he did not think “China’s macro policy stance will change significantly for the rest of the year”. The country is well on track to surpass the record $1.2 trillion hit last year, when the $1 trillion mark was reached in November. However, the export boom has fuelled tensions with several key trading partners, who worry that floods of lower-cost Chinese goods are crowding out local competition.
China dismisses a spy plot claim involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as smear campaign China dismisses a spy plot claim involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as smear campaign The chips company CEO is at the center of a controversy over whether he drove sales of advanced computer chips to China, in spite of U.S. tech restrictions aimed at limiting China’s ability to access these advanced technologies China dismisses a spy plot claim involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as smear campaign storyline 1 Xi-Trump summit Exports to the United States surged 32.9% last month, the GAC data showed.
Mr. Xi and Mr. Trump have navigated
Mr. Xi and Mr. Trump have navigated a shaky truce to a fierce trade war since their meeting in October last year, agreeing recently to extend the arrangement ahead of talks that were held in Washington in September. They are expected to hold another head-to-head at the APEC gathering, which runs from November 18 to 19 in Shenzhen and could also see Mr. Trump, Mr. Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold trilateral talks.
Trade tensions between Beijing and the European Union have been building in recent months. Tuesday’s (November 10) data showed China’s surplus with the 27-nation bloc had swelled to $310.7 billion in January-October — topping the $241.6 billion recorded during the same period last year. The lopsided shipments have put increasing pressure on Brussels to defend local industries from what critics call unfair competition from Chinese exports.
Talks last month in Beijing between EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic and Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao ended with an agreement to limit exports of hybrid vehicles to Europe. How AI is reshaping China’s universities How AI is reshaping China’s universities AI disruption and a tightening job market are driving a sweeping change across China’s universities; under the government’s ‘guideline on the reform of higher education institutions’, universities will now be tasked with specific goals, pursuing either research, application-oriented objectives, or skills development How AI is reshaping China’s universities storyline 1 Analysts say Beijing is relying heavily on exports to achieve its official growth target for this year of 4.5-5.0%, its lowest goal in decades.
Domestic consumption has been sluggish for several years, with data on Monday (November 9) showing inflation was still well short of the official target of around two percent.
