(Yicai) Aug. 10 -- China’s foreign trade growth slowed in July from the previous month as powerful typhoons battered the country’s coastal areas, but trade still remained in a high-growth range, according to the General Administration of Customs of China.

The total value of China’s imports and exports soared 25 percent last month from the year before to USD683.2 billion, but growth slowed by 5 percentage points from June, according to data released by the customs authority on Aug. 7. Exports surged 24 percent to USD397.9 billion, a slowdown of 3 percentage points from June’s pace, while imports jumped 28 percent to USD285.4 billion, a drop of 8 percentage points from June.

The slowdown in export growth in July was in line with market expectations and was mainly due to the temporary impact of powerful typhoons, said Feng Lin, executive director of the research and development department at Golden Credit Rating International.

Exports are still growing at a high rate, with the main drivers similar to those seen in June, Feng said. These include a sharp increase in exports of chips and related products amid the global boom in artificial intelligence investment.

China’s industrial upgrading and transformation are also supporting exports of new energy vehicles and other high-tech products, while relatively strong external demand is providing a boost to the exports of traditional Chinese goods, Feng added.

The value of China’s exports of integrated circuits surged 117 percent in July from the year before to USD38.7 billion, according to customs data. And the cumulative value of exports for the first seven months doubled from a year earlier to USD216 billion.

Meanwhile, bilateral trade ties have improved since US President Donald Trump’s visit to China in May, prompting a rapid rebound in the country’s exports to the US. China’s exports to the US rose 17 percent last month from the year before to USD41.9 billion, with growth accelerating by 3 percentage points compared to June.

After the disruption caused by the typhoons, Chinese exporters are expected to accelerate shipments to clear the backlog of goods, which could push export growth up to around 30 percent in August, Feng said. However, China’s export growth could face downward pressure later in the year as signs of a global economic slowdown emerge and the boost to chip exports from the AI investment boom begins to fade, she said.

In the first seven months, the total value of China’s imports and exports soared 22 percent from the year before to USD4.4 trillion, according to GAAC. Of this, exports jumped 19 percent to USD2.5 trillion, while imports surged 27 percent to USD1.8 trillion.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Kim Taylor