China’s trade surplus rose to a record in October, but fell short of many analysts’ predictions thanks to a jump in the value of imported raw materials.

Data on Monday showed the trade surplus rose to $27.1bn. Imports in October grew 25.5 per cent from the same month a year earlier to $80.7bn, accelerating from a 16.1 per cent rise in September. That exceeded the growth in exports, which rose 22.3 per cent from a year earlier to $107.7bn in October.