China Calls for Strait of Hormuz to Remain Open

China’s trade surplus widened to $125.62 billion in June 2026, up from $113.84 billion a year earlier and exceeding forecasts of $121 billion. This marked the second-largest monthly surplus on record, as both exports and imports grew more than expected, fueled by soaring chip prices and global demand for AI data center hardware. Exports surged 27% to a record $412.39 billion, while imports jumped 36%, the fastest increase in five years, to an all-time high of $286.76 billion. China’s trade surplus with the US rose to $28.9 billion in June from $26.02 billion in May. The surplus with Germany more than doubled year-on-year, and with the EU, it widened by 27% to a record $32.9 billion. In the first half of 2026, China’s trade surplus reached $575.98 billion, down from $586 billion a year earlier, as exports rose 17.6% while imports grew at a faster pace of 26.6%.

China’s trade surplus widened to USD 105.43 billion in May 2026 from USD 102.72 billion in the same period of 2025, surpassing expectations of USD 92.1 billion and marking the largest trade surplus since January. Export growth accelerated to 19.4% year-on-year, reaching a record high of USD 376.78 billion, up from April’s 14.1% increase and above forecasts of 15% as companies continued to build inventories to pre-empt energy price pressures stemming from the ongoing war in the Middle East. Meanwhile, imports jumped 27.4% yoy to USD 271.35 billion, above expectations of 25%, and accelerated from 25.3% growth in April amid the government's efforts to boost domestic consumption. China’s trade surplus with the US climbed to USD 26.02 billion in May from USD 23.07 billion in April. For the first five months of 2026, China’s trade surplus reached USD 451.71 billion, down from USD 471.9 billion in the same period of 2025, as exports grew 15.5% while imports rose at a faster pace of 24.5%.

Beijing signaled during the U.S.-China summit that China wants the Strait of Hormuz to remain open without restrictions, tolls, or military control, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said. Speaking to Bloomberg TV, Greer stated: “It’s really important for China to have the Strait of Hormuz open, no tolling, no military control.” He added that Washington views China as acting “very pragmatic” regarding Iran and believes Beijing does not want to be “on the wrong side of this.” Greer also said both China and the U.S. want peace in the region, expressing confidence that Beijing would help limit military support for Iran amid rising tensions in the Middle East.