China’s Widening Trade Surplus Puts Wen Under Yuan Pressure

China’s trade surplus reached an 18-month high as exports rose to a record and import gains slowed, adding pressure on officials to allow faster appreciation of the yuan and signaling a diminished contribution to global growth.

The gap surged 170 percent from a year earlier to $28.7 billion, the customs bureau said, exceeding the forecasts of all 29 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. Exports increased 38.1 percent to $145.5 billion and imports advanced 22.7 percent to $116.8 billion, the bureau said on its website today.