Japan's April trade surplus swells annually, but drops monthly

Japan’s April trade surplus swells annually, but drops monthly

The Ministry of Finance said Japan's trade surplus in April surged by 30.3% from a year earlier to Yen 1.08 trillion ($9.7 billion), driven by brisk exports of digital and steel products to Asia. However, trade surplus was down by 1.8% compared to March 2004. Data shows exports remained robust in April despite a drop in two way trade with US, previously Japan's largest trading partner. In April, Japan's trade surplus with the US declined by 2.4% to Yen 553.5 billion. In the mentioned period when compared with the same period of last year, Japan's exports rose by 10.8% to Yen 5.11 trillion while imports were recorded as Yen 4.03 trillion with an increase of 6.5%. Japan's trade surplus with Asia, which is now country's largest trade partner, soared by 62.6% to Yen 667.2 billion with Yen 2.5 trillion exports and Yen 1.8 trillion imports. Due to the shipbuilding boom in South Korea, exports of steel products to Asia increased by 25.7%. The increase in global crude oil prices is expected to affect the trade surplus of Japan in the coming months.