Pre-reading questions:
- Do you buy products from China?
- What are the things you buy that are made in China?
China’s exports in the first ten months of this year went down to 7.7 percent, while imports fell 7.5 percent. It is officially shown in the data on November 1st. The General Administration of Customs said that it left the country a big amount of trade surplus. It means that China sells more to other countries than it buys from other nations. The imports were expected to have decreased by 1 percent after falling 1.9 percent last month.
Reuters had forecasted a 6 percent tumble for exports, 1 percent slump for imports, and $51.70 billion amount of trade surplus. A weakening yuan likely helped clarify the monthly breakthrough in October exports. While Tuesday’s numbers accentuated the nature of global demand for Chinese products, most business strategists still trust the improving economy of the world’s known number-two.
Vocabulary:
exports – products that are sent to another country to be sold there
imports – products brought into a country to be sold there
customs – taxes or fees that are paid to the government when goods come into or go out of a country
accentuate – to make something noticeable
trade surplus – a country sells more to other countries than it buys from other nation
Comprehension Questions:
- What happened to the Chinese exports in the first ten months of this year?
- How much is the amount of trade surplus?
- According to the article, what are the percentages of China exports and imports this October?
- What does the “world’s number-two” mean?
Express Your Opinion:
- China is known to come after the world’s number one nation, the United States of America.
- How much do you know about your country’s growing economy?
- Which one will you buy first: your own country’s products, or the ones from the other countries? Explain.