| China's 2006 trade surplus hit record US$177.5 billion |
BEIJING, Jan. 11 (AP) -- China's 2006 global trade surplus jumped nearly 75 percent over the previous year to a record US$177.5 billion, according to data reported Wednesday by a state news agency.
The report seemed certain to fuel U.S. complaints about China's market access and currency policies. China's global trade surplus for 2005 was US$102 billion.
Exports in 2006 rose 27.2 percent from the previous year to US$969 billion, while imports were up 20 percent to US$791.5 billion, the Xinhua News Agency said, citing the General Administration of Customs.
The monthly trade surplus in December was US$21 billion, down slightly from the previous month, Xinhua said. That was still among the biggest monthly totals on record.
Xinhua did not give a country-by-country breakdown, but the United States says its trade deficit with China is on track to surpass 2005's record US$202 billion.
China's global surplus is smaller than that with the United States because it runs a deficit with other countries.
China's trade surplus has soared as exports of light manufactured goods grew in recent years. Also, import growth slowed in 2006 as the government imposed controls to slow an investment boom, which held down purchases of foreign factory equipment and other goods.
Washington is pressing Beijing to lower barriers to foreign competition in its markets and to ease currency controls that it says keep the Chinese yuan undervalued, giving China's exporters an unfair trade advantage and adding to the trade gap.
China was a net auto exporter in 2006 for the second straight year, Xinhua said. It said exports doubled last year to 300,000 units, while imports rose 41 percent to 229,000 units.
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