China’s Exports Unexpectedly Drop Blow to Confidence

China’s exports fell the most since the global financial crisis, dealing another blow to confidence as Communist Party leaders meeting in Beijing assess the risk from the nation’s first onshore bond default.

Shipments abroad dropped 18.1 percent from a year earlier, the customs administration said in Beijing yesterday, trailing the median estimate for a 7.5 percent increase in a Bloomberg News survey of 45 economists. Reports today showed inflation eased to a 13-month low in February and producer prices fell for a 24th month.