ECONOMY IMPROVES: China's trade picked up and inflation eased in January as a shaky economic recovery gained traction.

HOLIDAY EFFECT: Much of the change was due to the Lunar New Year holiday, which distorts China's economic data each year.

LOOKING FORWARD: Analysts said the January data still looked promising, but the trajectory of the recovery remains gradual and too weak to support a global rebound without improvement in the United States and Europe.