New figures show Chinese exports growing, and other news of the coming days

• FIGURES due out on Monday January 11th are expected to show that China’s exports in December were higher than a year ago, after 13 months of year-on-year declines. China’s exports fell by around 17% in 2009 as a whole, but other countries’ slumped by even more. Foreigners insist that the main reason for China’s growing market share is that the government has kept its currency weak. But lower incomes encouraged consumers to switch to the sort of cheaper goods that China produces, and the elimination of global textile quotas in January 2009 allowed China to increase its slice of that market.

• A DECISION on the issue of gay marriage in America takes a step towards the Supreme Court on Monday January 11th. A federal court will consider a lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of California’s voter-approved ban against same-sex marriage. Proposition 8, a ballot-box initiative passed in November 2008, ended California’s short stint as a state that allowed same-sex marriages. The trial will be the first to consider whether bans on gay marriage violate federal civil rights and anti-discrimination laws. Elsewhere, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Iowa, Vermont and Connecticut have all legalised gay weddings and Washington, DC, may well do so soon. …