25.01.202104:57:00UTC+00Australia's Trade Surplus Increases On Exports

Australia's trade surplus increased in December as exports logged a monthly growth amid falling imports, preliminary estimates from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed Monday.

The trade surplus increased to A$8.96 billion from A$1.53 billion in November.

Exports increased 16 percent on month to A$34.93 billion, while imports dropped 9 percent to A$25.97 billion.

Top export destinations were China, Japan, United States, India and South Korea. Exports to China grew 21 percent and that to Japan gained 24 percent. Shipments to US surged 58 percent.

Year-on-year, exports gained 3 percent and imports remained flat in December.

For the calendar year 2020, exports were 7 percent lower overall than 2019 and imports decreased 5 percent from last year.