Exports grew 2.4 percent in February, from a year earlier, to $96.74 billion, while imports surged 19.4 percent to $104.04 billion.

The GAC cited the Spring Festival as a major factor, as many exporters ceased production during the holiday.

The February slump contrasted sharply with January, when exports grew by 37.7 percent and imports surged by 51 percent.

Song Hong, head of the section of international trade with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, attributed the deficit to the "sharp rise in commodity prices".

Meanwhile, exports of textiles, mechanical and electrical goods, a large section of the total exports, registered declines.

"The increasing cost of labor and raw materials, along with the rising yuan, are major concerns for exporters," said Ding Mingquan, president of Fujian Jinjiang Aojin Knitting & Garments Co Ltd.

"These combined factors have eroded up to 4 percent of our gross profit," he said. His swimsuit factory, in Jinjiang, Fujian province, exports nearly 95 percent of its products to European countries and the United States.

Wang Tao, head of China Economic Research with UBS Securities, said China's exports will bounce back in a few months before slowing down with decreasing demand for made-in-China goods.

"China's trade surplus will shrink this year, and in some months deficits will be registered as various commodity prices, including iron ore, grain and crude oil, increase," Song said.