China's trade may regain its growth momentum after its economy started fairly well at the start of this year, the Ministry of Commerce said yesterday.

"China's overall trade is likely to gain growth momentum again after May when (last year's) high base effects fade off," a ministry statement said. "China's economy has fared relatively well at the beginning of this year, which paves the way for China's trade to expand steadily."

Although the ministry's quarterly report on China's trade conditions indicated exports and imports this year would continue to face difficulties and hurdles, "China's trade is likely to have a stable growth this year because the external conditions are better and won't change much."

In the first quarter, China's trade shed 1 percent from a year earlier to US$965.8 billion, with exports down 3.4 percent and imports up 1.6 percent.

In March, exports fell 6.6 percent and imports shrank 11.3 percent, worse than expected, as China boosted efforts on combating hot money as well as a high comparative base a year earlier.

Premier Li Keqiang said last week that China will boost support for trade, including faster tax rebate payments for exporters.

April data show China's growth stabilizing: Reuters poll

Growth in China's factory output and investment likely stabilized in April as the government uses targeted policy measures to underpin growth, while the pace of declines in exports and imports may have eased, a Reuters poll showed.

However, the world's second-largest economy may only get a temporary boost from such policy support, as growth will inevitably slow while the government seeks to tackle high debt levels and excessive factory capacity.

China's industrial output may have grown 8.9 percent in April from a year earlier, slightly ahead of the 8.8 percent rise in March, according to the poll of 18 economists.

Fixed-asset investment growth likely grew 17.7 percent in the first four months from a year earlier, also slightly firmer than the 17.6 percent pace seen in the first three months. The government only publishes cumulative investment data. >> More

HSBC manufacturing PMI sluggish in April

China's manufacturing sector failed to make a strong comeback in April, while the service sector continued to expand, underscoring the changing growth pattern in the world's second-largest economy.

The final reading of the HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics Purchasing Managers Index for April came in at 48.1, below the preliminary reading of 48.3 but up slightly from an eight-month low of 48.0 in March. It was the fourth month that the sector contracted.

The HSBC/Markit reading was in line with an earlier official PMI reading for April, both showing marginal improvement in the manufacturing sector. The official PMI, released by the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, rose to 50.4 from 50.3 in March, indicating a slight expansion.

The official PMI is weighted more toward bigger and State-owned enterprises, while the HSBC/Markit survey focuses on smaller private companies. >> More