China’s exports surged past analyst expectations last month as the global AI boom fed demand for Chinese chips, EVs, and other high-tech components.

Year-on-year exports jumped by close to 20%, driven partly by a 110% surge in semiconductor shipments, underscoring the failure of US tariffs to slow China’s trade. However, the data also provided worrying signs for Beijing.

Domestic consumption continued to plummet, with car sales plunging 22% year on year, marking the sixth consecutive month of double-digit declines and confirming the bifurcation of the world’s second-largest economy. “China’s economy has become a tale of two tracks,” Trivium China wrote this year: “A globally competitive export and high‑tech manufacturing base, alongside fragile domestic demand and shrinking investment.”