Economics
China Export Boom Fades as Buying Shifts, Cheap Rivals Gain
- Overseas orders are falling, profits slumping, exporters say
- Covid disruptions have pushed customers to Southeast Asia
Trade will likely get a temporary boost as Shanghai reopens from its two-month long Covid lockdown.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
After two years of record exports, Chinese manufacturers are turning downbeat as consumers in their biggest markets curb spending and Covid lockdowns drive customers to competitors in the region.
With most of the world now living with the coronavirus and travel and other leisure activities resuming, consumers are cutting back on spending on Chinese-made laptops, phones and other work-from-home goods that propelled the nation’s exports and fueled the economy’s recovery from its pandemic slump in 2020.