Japan books goods trade deficit for 3rd straight month in Jan.

Source: Xinhua | 2020-02-20

Japan logged a goods trade deficit in January marking the third straight month of red ink as weak overseas exports continued to weigh on the balance sheet, the government said in a report on Wednesday.

The trade deficit stood at 1.31 trillion yen (11.88 billion U.S. dollars) in January, with the figure coming on the heels of an upwardly revised 154.55 billion yen (1.40 billion U.S. dollars) deficit booked in December, the Finance Ministry said.

According to the ministry's preliminary figures, exports dropped 2.6 percent from a year earlier to 5.43 trillion yen (49.27 billion U.S. dollars), falling for the 14th consecutive month.

Imports, meanwhile, fell 3.6 percent to 6.74 trillion yen (61.15 billion U.S. dollars), marking the ninth straight month of decline amid falling overseas demand, the ministry said.

Exports to Japan's biggest trading partner, China, retreated 6.4 percent to 896.57 billion yen (8.13 billion U.S. dollars), while imports fell 5.7 percent to 1.74 trillion yen (15.78 billion U.S. dollars), with the deficit standing at 838.53 billion yen (7.60 billion U.S. dollars), the ministry said.

Japan's surplus with the United States edged up 0.3 percent to 369.23 billion yen (3.35 billion U.S. dollars) in the recording period, marking the first rise in five months.

Exports to the United States, however, dropped 7.7 percent to 1.05 trillion yen (9.52 billion U.S. dollars), marking the sixth straight month of decline, the ministry said.

For the rest of Asia, including China, Japan logged a trade deficit for the first time in a year, standing at 567.86 billion yen (5.15 billion U.S. dollars), the ministry's data showed.

As for the European Union, Japan booked a trade deficit for the seventh straight month, standing at 91.38 billion yen (828.99 million U.S. dollars), said the ministry.