China's trade surplus crested the $1 trillion mark in the first 10 months of 2026, with the country on pace for a record year.
According to The New York Times, China's surplus came in at $1.04 trillion for that period. For the month of October, exports exceeded imports by $105.3 billion, although that was down from the previous month, when the country recorded a $133.5 billion trade surplus. The dip between September and October was attributed to China's crude oil purchases soaring to their highest levels since the start of the war in the Middle East.
China restricted diesel, jet fuel and other refined oil product shipments to other countries in October, in an effort to conserve its domestic fuel supplies. However, overall exports jumped by 35.2% year-over-year in October, thanks to significant upticks in shipments of cables, racks and other data center equipment.
At the moment, China is on pace to exceed 2025's full year trade surplus record of $1.19 trillion. It also recently agreed to a two-month extension of its trade truce with the U.S. that was set to expire on November 10, as China continues to work toward a longer term deal with the Trump administration.
However, China has struggled economically in other key areas. Housing prices in the country have tumbled by 40% over the past five years, following a debt-fueled property boom through the 2000s and 2010s that led to a crackdown on excessive borrowing by developers in 2020. Since then, restrictions have left builders struggling to repay debts and finish homes they had already sold.
