This episode contains segments on:
- China’s March 2026 foreign trade data;
- March price indices;
- Spanish Prime Minister Sanchez’s visit to China;
The Chamber’s latest report Exporting Control: China’s New Strategic Toolkit is available to download on the Chamber’s official website for free.
Contact:
We’d love to hear your feedback. Contact us at website@europeanchamber.com.cn.
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Read more:
China’s March 2026 Foreign Trade Data
http://www.customs.gov.cn/customs/2026-04/14/article_2026041410445518792.html
http://www.customs.gov.cn/customs/2026-04/14/article_2026041410445544739.html
http://www.customs.gov.cn/customs/2026-04/14/article_2026041410445573103.html
China’s March Price Indices
https://www.stats.gov.cn/sj/zxfb/202604/t20260410_1963264.html
https://www.stats.gov.cn/sj/zxfb/202604/t20260410_1963263.html
Spanish Prime Minister Sanchez visits China
https://www.gov.cn/yaowen/liebiao/202604/content_7065562.htm
Exporting Control: China’s New Strategic Toolkit
https://www.europeanchamber.com.cn/en/publications-archive/1380
Transcript:
RUI: Hello and welcome to China ShortCuts,
XINHE: the European Chamber’s weekly catch-up on China’s business landscape.
RUI: This episode was recorded on 15th April 2026.
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RUI: In March, the value of China’s imports from the rest of the world surged by 27.8 per cent year-on-year in value terms, representing the strongest growth in four years. Meanwhile, exports from China grew modestly at 2.5 per cent year-on-year.
XINHE: An increase in commodity and high-tech product imports drove the overall increase seen in March. Imports of rare earths rose by 167 per cent, fertiliser by 59.6 per cent and copper ore by 45.6 per cent year-on-year in value terms. Among advanced products, imports of automated data processing equipment saw the strongest growth, rising 49.5 per cent year-on-year. Integrated circuits and mechanical and electrical equipment imports also saw increases at 45 per cent and 24.9 per cent year-on-year respectively.
On a per-country and territory basis, imports routed through Hong Kong saw the strongest growth, growing 334.6 per cent year-on-year in March. However, despite the overall surge in imports, many markets saw a continued expansion of their trade deficits with China, with Chinese exports outpacing imports. In March, China’s imports from the European Union rose 10.5 per cent, while exports to the EU increased 21.1 per cent year-on-year in value terms.
Chinese exports to the rest of the world saw more modest growth across the board. Toy exports fell by 14.8 per cent, steel by 10.8 per cent and rare earths by nine per cent year-on-year in value terms. Most other product categories saw stagnation or modest increases. Outliers were integrated circuits and automobile exports which increased 77.5 per cent and 58.5 per cent year-on-year.
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RUI: For the first time in three years, China’s Producer Price Index—or PPI—rose by 0.5 per cent year-on-year ending its deflationary streak.
XINHE: This was mainly driven by a rise in commodity prices with the PPI for the means of production—which includes many industrial inputs—increasing by one per cent year-on-year. Inflation was also seen across industries, with prices in the mining and raw materials industries rising by two per cent and 1.1 per cent year-on-year respectively.
Despite this positive sign for the authorities’ efforts to fight deflation, many advanced industries continued to face factory gate price deflation. The automobile and computer, communication and other electronic equipment manufacturing industries saw factory gate prices drop 2.4 per cent and 0.7 per cent respectively.
The PPI for consumer goods remained in deflationary territory in March, recording an overall decrease of 1.3 per cent year-on-year. Prices for a range of other goods fell, with food prices declining 1.7 per cent, daily necessities 1.4 per cent and clothing prices 1.1 per cent year-on-year.
(Music)
RUI: China’sCPI—or Consumer Price Index—grew by one per cent year-on-year, narrowing slightly from February’s one-year high.
XINHE: CPI growth in March was driven by increases in the price for consumer goods which rose by 1.5 per cent year-on-year. Food price inflation, which had driven CPI growth in previous months, eased in March, coming in at 0.3 per cent year-on-year. This was mainly due to a fall in meat prices.
Six of the seven major goods categories saw price inflation in March with medical care increasing strongest at 1.9 per cent, followed by clothing and daily necessities at 1.6 per cent and 1.5 per cent year-on-year. Housing prices fell by 0.2 per cent year-on-year in March.
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RUI: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is visiting China between the 11th and 15th of Apriland met with President Xi Jinping on Tuesday, 14th April.
XINHE: A range of issues were discussed by the two leaders, from climate change to security and defence, to international trade. Within the EU, Sanchez is an advocate for closer ties between Europe and China. Much of his visit was therefore focused on improving economic ties and discussing lingering tensions. Sanchez also emphasised that the current trade imbalance between the two regions is unsustainable. After the meeting on 14th April, China agreed to measures that would narrow Spain’s trade deficit with China.
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RUI: On 14th April, the European Chamber published Exporting Control: China’s New Strategic Toolkit.
XINHE: The report dives deep into the development of China’s export control regime, which has enabled the country to control the global supply of strategic goods like rare earths. Given that a significant expansion of China’s export control regime is set to enter force in November 2026, the report calls for urgent action by China to prevent supply chain disruptions later in the year.
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RUI: Thanks for listening, and don’t forget to tune in next week.
XINHE: In the meantime, please find useful links in the episode notes.