China's exports rose 18.6% year on year in August

China's exports accelerated in August, rising 18.6% from a year earlier to about 2.72 trillion yuan, according to official data released by the country's General Administration of Customs.

The increase followed a slowdown in July, when exports grew 17.8%, compared with 20.8% in June. Exports remain a key engine for the world's second-largest economy as it contends with domestic demand problems.

Imports grew faster in August, increasing 21.7% year on year to about 1.92 trillion yuan. That left China with a trade surplus of about 809.3 billion yuan, up 10.46% from the same month last year. Total trade with other countries reached roughly 4.65 trillion yuan, an annual increase of 19.8%.

From January through August, total trade rose 17.6%. Imports increased 22% over that period, outpacing the 14.6% growth in exports.

Customs also released figures in U.S. dollars, the measure commonly used by international analysts. Dollar-denominated exports rose 25% year on year to about $401.44 billion, while imports increased 28.2% to $282.36 billion. Analysts correctly forecast the pace of export growth, but had expected imports to rise more sharply, by about 30%.