China's imports in August miss estimates as calls for rebalancing trade grow

China's trade growth picked up in August, though imports missed expectations, a sign that domestic demand remains tepid as the world's second-largest economy faces mounting pressure to rebalance trade.

Exports grew 25% in U.S. dollar terms in August from a year earlier, official customs data showed Tuesday , in line with Reuters-polled analysts' forecast, quickening from 23.9% increase the previous month.

Imports rose 28.2% last month, missing economists' estimates of 30% in a Reuters poll, but gathering momentum from 27.5% in July. As a result, China's trade surplus swelled to $119.09 billion from $112.5 billion in July.

Chinese shipments to the U.S. surged 34.4% in August, extending the double-digit gains for most of this year, while imports grew 17.8%, according to CNBC's calculation of official data. The exports to the European Union expanded 6.6% while imports ticked higher by 0.7% last month. China's imports from South Korea more than doubled last month while exports jumped nearly 50%.

Exports have become the primary growth driver for China's economy, as surging demand for high-tech components amid a global build-out of AI infrastructure has helped cushion the drag from geopolitical shocks, sluggish domestic demand and a slump in investment.

"China continues to rely on exporters to support the economy" as domestic demand remains subdued, said Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, noting the mounting pushback from governments globally over its trade imbalances.

The offshore yuan barely moved after the data release on Tuesday, standing at 6.7099 per U.S. dollar. The Chinese currency has outperformed its Asian peers this year, strengthening 3.8% year to date against the greenback.

China's exorbitant surplus has fueled calls among economists and foreign officials for Beijing to strengthen its deeply undervalued yuan, which has contributed to its export boom. Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow Brad Setser estimated last month that the Chinese currency is undervalued by 20% .