Japan trade deficit narrows sharply as imports slow

Imports rose 8.3% from a year ago, decelerating from the previous month on a slowdown in energy shipments. Exports climbed 6.5% as cars pushed up gains. — Bloomberg

TOKYO: Japan’s trade deficit narrowed sharply in February from the previous month’s record shortfall, as the impact from the lunar new year in China reversed, slowing imports and encouraging exports.The trade gap shrank to 897.7 billion yen (RM30.6bil) from 3.5 trillion yen (RM118.42bil) in January, the finance ministry reported yesterday, coming in below analyst forecasts.

Imports rose 8.3% from a year ago, decelerating from the previous month on a slowdown in energy shipments. Exports climbed 6.5% as cars pushed up gains. The reversal of impacts from January’s lunar new year holidays meant that China was a lead cause behind the narrowing of Japan’s trade deficit last month.