China’s latest trade figures showed a sharp decline in export growth combined with a strong rebound in imports in March, but volatility and discrepancies in the data have raised concerns about their accuracy, writes Jamil Anderlini in Beijing.

Exports increased 10 per cent in March from the same month a year earlier, compared with a 22 per cent increase in February, while imports surged 14.1 per cent, compared with a year-on-year drop of more than 15 per cent the previous month.

Part of the volatility was explained by the long Lunar New Year holiday, which shuts down most of the country for weeks, but most analysts said there was also a problem with the data. The implausible figures were likely the result of capital inflows being disguised as trade invoices to evade the country’s restrictive capital controls, they said