China's exports rose 8.1% in April from the year before, the government said Friday, faster than economists were expecting, though exports to the United States sank more than 20%.

Economists had forecast that China's global exports would grow about 2% in April, down from a whopping 12.4% year-on-year increase in March. Imports fell 0.2% in April from the year before.

The data were released a day before US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and other top US officials were due to meet with Beijing's lead trade envoy, He Lifeng. The plans for talks in Geneva, Switzerland, could bring a shift in the stalemate over President Donald Trump's hikes in tariffs on Chinese good to as much as 145%.

But the world's two biggest economies are at odds over a raft of issues, including colliding strategic interests that will likely impede progress in the talks.

Some of the punitive tariffs, including Beijing's retaliatory 125% tariffs on U.S. exports, could be rolled back, but a full reversal is unlikely, Zichun Huang of Capital Economics said in a report.

“This means China's exports to the U.S. are set for further declines over the coming months, not all of which will be offset by increased trade with other countries. We still expect export growth to turn negative later this year,” Huang said.

China's politically sensitive trade surplus with the United States was nearly $20.5 billion in April, down from about $27.2 billion a year earlier. In the first four months of the year, China's exports to the United States fell 2.5% from a year earlier, while imports from the U.S. fell 4.7%.

Preliminary data also show that U.S. imports from other countries not subject to US President Donald Trump's 145% tariff on Chinese products have been rising quickly.

Exports to the United States form just a part of China's trade, and exports to the rest of the world have helped offset that weakness. Exports to Southeast Asian countries were up 11.5% from a year earlier in the first four months of this year. Exports to Latin America also climbed 11.5%. Shipments to India jumped nearly 16% by value, and exports to Africa surged 15%.

Some of the fastest growth was in Asia, reflecting moves by Chinese and other manufacturers to diversify their supply chains outside of the Chinese mainland.

Exports to Vietnam jumped 18% year-on-year, while exports to Thailand were up 20%.

Measured on a monthly basis, China's total exports rose just 0.6% in April, while imports increased by nearly 4% from March.