Chinese exports rose for the second consecutive month in April, official data showed on Monday, boosted by improving global demand but the increase was slower than the previous month.

Exports rose 8.0 percent year-on-year to $180 billion, lower than the 11.3 percent forecast by analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News, while imports were up 11.9 percent at $142 billion, also weaker than the 18 percent expected.

The trade surplus rose to $38 billion from $23.9 billion in March, according to customs figures.

While exports increased at a slower rate than March, when they soared by 16.4 percent, they followed a 1.3 percent fall in February.

“Growth in exports shows robust global demand,” Xia Le, a Hong Kong-based economist at Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, told Bloomberg News.

“China’s financial deleveraging has just started, and will weigh on the domestic economy. Imports will reflect that trend first,” Xia said.

Source: AFP