China's exports likely contracted 2.8% in December

From MarketWatch: China's exports likely contracted 2.8% in December
China's export growth likely contracted 2.8% in December from a year earlier, its sharpest pace of contraction since 1999. The figures were cited in a J.P. Morgan research note Tuesday which attributed the data to mainland China media reports. The decline follows a 2.2% contraction in November. "The difficulty of obtaining trade finance in the closing months of 2008 may have had a further exacerbating effect on the headline number". China's export growth will likely be flat this year when compared to 2008, although early months of the year will see trade contract.