China, the world’s biggest exporter, delivered a gloomy prognosis for the global economy, warning that falling foreign demand would result in weaker trade at home this year, Financial Times reports.

The warning came as the country’s customs office revealed better-than-expected trade in December, the same month the renminbi saw its second steepest fall since 2005.

Economists hailed the improved Chinese export data in December, saying a widening trade surplus could lend support to the renminbi, where declines this month have sparked a stock market sell-off.

China’s exports, measured in US dollars, declined 1.4 per cent in December month-on-month, narrowing the 6.8 per cent fall seen in November, the customs service said on Wednesday.

Imports fell 7.6 per cent during December, compared with November’s 8.7 per cent drop, as falling commodity prices continued to take a toll. As a result, China’s trade surplus widened to $60.1bn in the final month of 2015.

Commerzbank said the weaker renminbi likely contributed to the stronger trade performance. Ms Wang however noted that the renminbi had been far more stable against the basket of foreign currencies tracked by China’s central bank — a better trade reference since the US accounts for just one-fifth of China’s trade.

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