China’s trade surplus hit a record high in 2024, a symbolically potent $1 trillion. The optics of that rounded-up figure—the exact number was $992.2 billion—dovetail neatly with US President Donald Trump’s pejorative rhetoric regarding China’s status as a trade creditor and his stated aim of using tariffs to reduce the US trade deficit.

Australias trade balance narrowed in December as a surge in imports outpaced sluggish exports, reflecting weak demand from China. The trade surplus fell to A$5.09 billion, down from A$6.56 billion in November,