China has beat market estimates after recording strong trade data in August as imports unexpectedly rose for the first time in two years, and a slump in exports halted.

China' imports unexpectedly increased by 1.5 percent last month, reversing a 12.5 percent fall in July and coming in better than the projected 4.9 percent decline.

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Augusts' increase was the first on-year rise in imports in dollar-denominated terms since October 2014.

Meanwhile, exports fell by 2.8 percent in dollar terms year-on-year following a 4.4 percent drop in July and beating a projected fall of four percent.

 A trade surplus of $52.05 billion was experienced, slightly below the $52.31 billion that was received in July. This was a seven-month high, but it fell below the estimate of $58 billion.

The Australian dollar, which is seen as a proxy for the Chinese economy, increased up to $0.7683 against the U.S dollar.

Despite the encouraging results, slowing global demand will still have an effect on China's export and manufacturing outlook.

"The PMI indicated that new export orders in August continued to stay contradictory, albeit with a slight improvement," Economists at ANZ said in a statement.

Thursday's data could be a bright spot for global trade amid current problems about protectionism, the collapse of South Korean firm Hanjin Shipping and the stalled progress of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

China's huge demand for goods and services has a great influence on trade flows, so  greater import demand can help revitalize global exports.

Tagschina, Economy, imports