Chart of the Day: Despite Tariffs, U.S.-China Trade Gap Hits Record

China’s trade surplus in goods with the U.S. set a new record of $31.05 billion in August, up from $28.09 billion the month before, according to Chinese customs data.

The country’s accumulative trade surplus in goods with the U.S. in the first eight months reached $193.11 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13.7%, according to Caixin calculations based on customs data.

China’s goods exports to the U.S. grew 13.2% to $44.39 billion in August from a year earlier, up from an 11.2% year-on-year increase in July.

China’s record trade surplus in goods with the U.S. comes at a politically sensitive time, as the Trump administration is considering whether to move forward with another round of punitive tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports such as handbags and bicycle tires.

China’s trade surplus in goods with the rest of the world continued to narrow in August, dropping to $27.91 billion from $28.05 billion in July.

Contact reporter Charlotte Yang (yutingyang@caixin.com)