China's imports rose 1.5 percent year-on-year in August, Customs said Thursday, the first rise in 22 months and beating expectations in a positive sign for the world's second-largest economy.

Exports dropped 2.8 percent on-year to $190.6 billion, Customs said, also beating the median forecast in a survey of economists by Bloomberg News. The trade surplus fell 13.6 percent from last year to $52.0 billion.