THE country is expected to report much slower export growth for April after a strong rebound in March, while imports likely shrank for a fifth straight month but at a milder pace, a recent poll showed. If tomorrow’s readings are in line with forecasts, they could reinforce views that the economy lost some growth momentum at the start of the second quarter, as suggested by softer factory activity gauges last week. China’s exports in April are expected to have risen 2.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the median estimate of 24 economists in the latest poll, cooling from a 14.2 percent rise in March. Some economists believe the unexpected strength in March was mainly due to temporary distortions including seasonal factors and changes in exporters’ and importers’ activity ahead of a cut in the value-added tax (VAT) on April 1. Global demand still appears sluggish, with factory surveys pointing to softer export orders in April, due in part to continued business uncertainty as the trade war drags on. The total value of export orders signed at China’s biggest trade fair last month fell slightly from a year earlier. Import data is expected to show China’s domestic demand also remains weak, but a more modest drop is forecast for April, suggesting that a flurry of government growth-boosting measures since last year are starting to have a more noticeable effect. Economists predict April imports fell 3.6 percent from a year earlier, narrowing from the previous month’s 7.6 percent decline. Higher global prices for commodities such as oil and iron ore may also have provided some cushion to import readings, economists at Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) said. In March, China announced billions of dollars in additional tax cuts and infrastructure spending as it looked to put the economy back on more solid footing after growth last year slowed to a near 30-year low. China’s overall trade surplus is expected to have expanded to US$35 billion in April from US$32.65 billion the previous month, according to the poll. (SD-Agencies) | 