Exports from the manufacturing powerhouse were up 14.1 percent in April compared to the same month last year, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said.

The growth outpaced a Bloomberg forecast of 8.4 percent based on a survey of economists, and significantly picking up pace from the 2.5 percent increase in March.

Booming trade has represented a vital lifeline for Beijing in recent years as the domestic economy lags, with sluggish spending and a stubborn debt crisis in the property sector weighing on activity.

Observers are awaiting a high-stakes meeting in Beijing next week between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US counterpart Donald Trump.

The talks previously set for late March were delayed by the US-Israeli war with Iran, which has sent global energy prices soaring as shipping through the vital Strait of Hormuz has effectively come to a halt.

For Trump, China's massive surplus in bilateral trade between the countries has long been a major sticking point.

Ahead of the key summit, China's exports to the United States grew 11.3 percent year-on-year in April, official data showed Saturday, returning to growth after dropping sharply by 26.5 percent in March.

Economists argue that China should shift towards a growth model powered more by household consumption than traditional drivers including real estate and infrastructure investment.

In a positive sign for domestic spending, imports into the world's second-largest economy grew 25.3 percent year-on-year last month.

That figure beat a Bloomberg forecast of 20.0 percent but was slightly lower than the 27.8-percent surge in March.