China’s commodities imports mostly fell year-on-year in March, the last full month before the Trump administration choked off bilateral trade by imposing punitive levies on Chinese goods.
With the exception of a surge in crude oil imports, the figures show how a slowing economy, and spike in trade tensions with the world’s biggest consumer, had weakened demand for key raw materials even before Trump’s tariff shock in early April. They also capture disruptions to supply caused by China’s retaliatory tariffs on US energy in February and agricultural goods in March.