Exports on the mainland rose in November for the first time in seven months, officials said on Thursday, as the nation recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Overseas shipments edged up 0.5 percent on-year to US$291 billion, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said, marking their first increase since April.

The figure was much better than the 0.3 percent contraction forecast by analysts in a Bloomberg poll. It also beat the 1.1 percent drop expected in a Reuters poll.

However, imports slipped back into contraction, falling 0.6 percent to US$224 billion, the GAC said.

Chinese exports – long a key growth driver – have largely been in decline since last October except for a short-lived rebound in March and April.

They slumped 6.4 percent in October, faring far worse than analysts' predictions.

The world's second-largest economy expanded a moderate 4.9 percent in the third quarter, slightly less than Beijing's five percent target, which is one of the lowest in years. Exports have also been hit by weak global demand.

South Korean exports, another gauge of the health of global trade, rose for a second month in November, buoyed by chip exports, which snapped 15 months of declines.

The International Monetary Fund in November upgraded its China growth forecasts for 2023 and 2024 by 0.4 percentage points each. But Moody's on Tuesday slapped a downgrade warning on China's A1 credit rating. (AFP/Reuters)