China’s trade slump continues in July + Explosion in Turkish port, and more on the Panama Canal

China’s exports tumbled 14.5% y-o-y in July , while imports dropped 12.4% y-o-y, according to data from Beijing’s General Administration of Customs picked up by Bloomberg. The drops are attributed to obstacles in international trade, the stagnating Chinese property sector, and declining domestic demand since covid-19 restrictions were lifted.

The news got a lot of ink in the foreign business press: Bloomberg | Financial Times | Wall Street Journal | Reuters | CNBC

ALSO WORTH KNOWING-

• Turkey has put in place a 20% additional charge on some gold imports to help curb adverse effects on the current account balance. (Reuters)
• At least 12 people were wounded and 15k tons of grain were damaged by a port explosion in Northwest Turkey. (Arab News | AP news)
• The Panama Canal saw average delays of 15-19 days per vessel during the first week of August on the back of lower water levels and protracted labor disputes. (Splash)