China’s goods trade growth accelerated to 19.8% year-on-year in August, making foreign trade the strongest part of the month’s national economic data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on September 15. Imports rose 21.7%, faster than exports at 18.6%, as demand for raw materials, intermediate goods and technology-related products increased. The CPI and PPI also turned positive month-on-month, indicating a moderate recovery in prices. Fu Linghui, NBS spokesperson and chief economist, said domestic demand still contributed more than 80% of economic growth in the first half of the year, despite rapid foreign-trade expansion. Investment and consumption remained weaker: fixed-asset investment fell 7.2% in the first eight months, while retail sales of consumer goods and services increased 2.5%. However, investment in intellectual property products and high-tech industries grew, and smart, green and services consumption outpaced goods retailing. The manufacturing PMI remained below 50% for a second month, although production and new orders returned to expansion territory. Analysts cited expectations for additional policy support, including financial instruments, faster government bond issuance, interest-rate and reserve-requirement-ratio cuts, and additional government bonds. Fu Linghui said China’s economy operated smoothly overall in August but still faced weak domestic demand, external risks and difficulties among some companies, requiring further macroeconomic adjustment and a focus on domestic demand, industrial upgrading and innovation-driven growth.