China’s exports rose 4.1 percent year-on-year in April – judged in yuan-denominated terms – while imports fell 5.7 percent, Chinese state run news agency Xinhua reported on Sunday.

According to Xinhua, the growth in April in the value of China’s exports was weaker than the increase registered in March. Imports on the other hand, registered a larger percentage fall year-on-year in April than had been seen in March.

Data from China’s General Administration of Customs – quoted by the media outlet – pointed to a monthly trade surplus of 298 billion yuan (US$45.9 billion) in April, up from 194.6 billion yuan in March.

Xinhua quoted Bloomberg chief Asia economist Tom Orlik as saying the trend in China’s exports remained positive but continued to be affected by weak global demand.

In the first four months of 2016, the value of Chinese exports dropped 2.1 percent from previous year while the value of imports decreased 7.5 percent, Xinhua said. This led to a trade surplus of 1.11 trillion yuan, up by 16.5 percent from a year earlier, the news agency added.