UPDATE 1-China June trade surplus with U.S. rises 11% to $29.92 bln

China's trade surplus with the United States, a major source of friction with its biggest trading partner, rose 11% in June to $29.92 billion from $26.9 billion in May, customs data showed on Friday.

For the first half of 2019, China's trade surplus with the U.S. rose 5% to $140.48 billion, from $133.76 billion in the same period in 2018. China's imports from the U.S. slumped 31.4% in June from a year earlier, following a near 27% drop in May. Its exports to the U.S. fell by a sharper 7.8% in June, compared with a decline of 4.2% in May.

June marked the first full month of higher U.S. tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods, which Washington announced weeks earlier after trade talks between the world's largest economies broke down. Though both sides agreed in late June to resume negotiations, and Washington said it would hold off on additional levies, existing tariffs remain in place.

No timeframe has been set for the new round of trade talks, and the two sides remain at odds over significant issues needed for an agreement, raising the risk of a much longer and costlier battle that will weigh heavily on the global economy.

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