Trade surplus skyrockets to hit monthly record

China's trade surplus surged to a monthly record high in July as export growth unexpectedly accelerated and imports fell, suggesting the recoveries in the United States and Europe will help sustain expansion in the world's second-largest economy.

Overseas shipments increased 14.5 percent from a year earlier, the Beijing-based customs administration said on Friday, beating all estimates in a Bloomberg News survey that had a median projection of 7 percent. Imports dropped 1.6 percent, leaving a trade surplus of $47.3 billion, bigger than all analyst estimates.

Sales to the biggest markets of the US and Europe surged, indicating strength in demand that will reduce pressure on Premier Li Keqiang to expand stimulus measures in the second half to bolster growth. The report contrasts with the International Monetary Fund's estimate last month of a slowdown in the US economy that accompanied a cut in its global growth outlook.