China International Political Economy

The China trade surplus hit a record of $35.2 billion in October according to AP.

The news represents a 30 percent increase in Chinese trade surplus primarily due to a 19.1 percent increase in exports despite the global economic slowdown that is severely impacting the US and Europe.

While the China trade news is positive, there is significant data that suggest this is only a delayed economic result and that we should see a significant slowdown in Chinese export numbers as consumer spending in the West begins to dry up over the next few quarters.