China’s exports to the United States fell sharply in April after Donald Trump’s triple-digit tariffs took effect, in another sign of the damage the US president’s trade war is causing the world’s two largest economies as they prepare for de-escalation talks.
Outbound shipments to the US stood at $33 billion last month, according to customs data released on Friday. It was a whopping 21% decline from the $41.8 billion recorded in April 2024, according to CNN’s calculation.
However, China’s overall exports grew by 8.1% in US dollar terms last month, a figure that greatly exceeded the forecast from a group of economists polled by Reuters. The stronger-than-expected performance was due to a surge in Chinese exports to countries in Southeast Asia and Europe, which were 21% and 8% higher respectively.
“Since the beginning of this year, all regions and departments have worked together to effectively respond to external shocks, promote the continuous recovery of China’s economy and continue the steady growth of foreign trade,” Lv Daliang, director of the statistics department at the General Administration of Customs, told state broadcaster CCTV.
The trade figures point to the significant toll the ongoing tariff war is already taking on the Chinese economy, as well as Beijing’s efforts to find markets beyond the US for its exports. Last week, official data showed China’s factory activity contracted at its fastest pace in 16 months in April, adding urgency to Beijing’s efforts to roll out fresh economic stimulus.
But the impact isn’t confined to China. In the US, the economy went into reverse in the first quarter, its first contraction in three years, as businesses stockpiled goods in anticipation of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, which began in April.
The stark numbers illustrate what’s at stake this weekend when Trump’s top trade officials meet with their Chinese counterparts in Geneva, Switzerland to discuss a possible de-escalation of the trade war. The US has placed at least a 145% tariff on most Chinese imports, and China has responded with a 125% tariff on most US imports. As a result, trade between the two sides is falling sharply, according to logistics experts.
Ships now pulling into US harbors from China are the first to be subject to the tariffs that America is imposing on most Chinese imports. That means, in a matter of weeks, consumers will face higher prices and shortages of certain items.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who will be in Geneva along with Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, has poured cold water on prospects of a deal, saying only that he’s hoping for a “de-escalation.”