BEIJING, Sept. 10 (UPI) -- China's trade surplus shrank significantly in August because imports jumped in the month, the General Administration of Customs office said Friday.
The surplus dropped from $28.7 billion in July to $20 billion in August, with imports surging 35.2 percent compared to a year ago, The New York Times reported.
Although month-to-month growth in exports slowed, Chinese exports are still sharply higher than August 2009, when the global recession deflated international trade. Exports were 34.4 percent higher than a year ago, the Times said.
The trade data will likely be used by both China and the United States to shore up arguments on China's currency policy, which the United States would like to see loosened, to allow the yuan to appreciate.
A stronger yuan would make China's exports more expensive abroad and tilt the balance toward countries, such as the United States, that have lost jobs to Chinese manufacturing.
UPI
