China sees steady trade growth in 2016 despite weak global demand

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's combined exports and imports are expected to post steady growth in 2016, as government policy measures to support trade gain traction, the Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday, but global demand was likely to stay weak.

Consumers in developed countries remained cautious alongside volatility in emerging-market economies, the ministry said in a report.

But China's trade sector would be able to tide over the difficult period and "achieve steady development" next year, the ministry said, without giving exact forecasts.

China has in recent months quickened the payment of tax rebates for exporters while the central bank devalued the yuan by nearly 2 percent in August, a move it billed as a reform step but which some suspect could herald further currency weakness to spur exports.

China's exports fell 3.7 percent in September from a year earlier, while imports tumbled for the 11th straight month, losing over 20 percent year-on-year in September due to weak commodity prices and soft domestic demand, earlier official data showed.

The value of exports this year was likely to be similar to the 2014 level, while imports may fall sharply, the ministry said.

Highlighting persistent weakness in demand at home and abroad, China's combined exports and imports fell 8.1 percent in the first nine months of the year from the same period in 2014, well below the full-year official target of 6 percent growth.

The value of China's services trade was expected to grow more than 10 percent in 2016, the ministry said.

(Reporting by China economics team; Editing by Nick Macfie)