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Japan: trade surplus of 366.8 billion yen, exports -4.2% and imports -11.1%
Japanese exports declined in November compared to a year ago, according to data released by the Finance Ministry, following the introduction of new restrictions around the world to counter the second wave of the coronavirus, and imports have fallen again. Thus, Japan registered a trade surplus of 366.8 billion yen (2.9 billion euros) in November.
Japanese exports fell 4.2% in value last month in a year, to 6.114 billion yen (48.5 billion euros). An unexpected drop: the consensus of economists predicted a slight increase of 0.4% in one year. It is the first month since last May that the decline in Japanese exports has worsened again. Japanese exports to China grew 3.8% in November year-on-year, a sharp slowdown following double-digit increases in September and October.
Those to the United States fell to -2.5% (they had returned to positive territory in the previous two months) and those to Western Europe fell significantly compared to the previous months (-1.2%). The archipelago’s imports fell again (-11.1% in one year), to 5,747 million yen (45,600 million euros). Although still significant, the decline slowed for the fourth month in a row, a sign of some improvement in Japanese demand. Imports from China rebounded 6.7% in November on an annual basis, but those from Western Europe (-16.4%) and the United States (-13.9%) collapsed.
