China’s export sector rebounded in March to post the biggest jump in more than a year and added to signs that the world’s second biggest economy has begun to stabilize. In dollar terms, shipments rose by 11.5% compared to the same month last year.

The better-than-expected data suggests that the worst may be over for China’s exporters who have spent most of the last year painting a deteriorating picture of their fortunes. The increase in shipments is attributable to more than just seasonal factors according to Canadian-headquartered broker-dealer, Monex BMO Securities.

“This is highly encouraging but we shouldn’t be too quick to conclude that it’s off to the races again for Chinese exporters,” said Guillaume Toussaint, emerging markets strategist with Monex BMO Securities.

Exports to the US increased 9% while those to the EU leapt by nearly 18%. The country’s steel exports jumped to their highest level all year and highlighted the threat to producers in other countries who continue to criticize China for flooding the market with cheap steel.

Asian markets responded positively to the data with the benchmark Chinese mainland Shanghai Composite advancing 1.4% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 ending the session up 2.8%. European markets took their cues from Asia with France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s DAX gaining 2% in intraday trading.

Monex BMO Securities said it still regarded emerging market equities as a strong buy and reiterated its view that they would be the stand out investment of 2016. “Chinese stocks in particular have taken a beating over the last 10 months and there is plenty of upside potential for those with a slightly higher risk profile,” said Toussaint.

About Monex BMO Securities
Monex BMO Securities is a privately held, fully independent investment and wealth management leader, with retail operations based in Toronto, Canada and corporate trading division headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

From our offices in Toronto the capital city of the province of Ontario and financial and business capital of Canada, we serve private individuals and families from N. America to Europe and with our corporate trading division strategically located in Tokyo, Japan, we have unrivalled access to Asia’s high yielding emerging markets, access to corporate resources, private equity and global mergers and acquisitions.