China’s Import/Exports Down

China’s exports fell 17.5% in January from a year earlier, according to customs data report. Imports fell even faster to 43%, as Chinese factories bought less foreign raw materials and consumer demand weakened.

The declines exceeded forecasts have increased concerns that the country’s slump might not be ending, despite recent data showing manufacturing improving and higher bank lending, the Associated Press reports.

The government is trying to reduce China’s reliance on exports by boosting domestic consumer spending with a 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) stimulus announced in November. The stimulus is meant to pump money into the economy through higher outlays on highway construction and other public works. But analysts do not expect to see the impact of the stimulus until the quarter beginning in April.

The fall in exports greatly affect the country’s coastal areas that have been hit by waves of factory closures and layoffs. The government says some 20 million migrants have lost their jobs and communist leaders worry about possible unrest.