FILE - Cars for export are loaded onto a cargo ship at a port in Yokohama, on Nov. 2, 2021. Japans exports rose 7.8% in February, 2024, as shipments continued to expand in cars and electrical machinery, according to government data released Thursday, March 21, 2024.– Japan’s exports rose 7.8% in February, as shipments continued to expand in cars and electrical machinery, according to government data released Thursday.
The nation’s trade deficit sank to 379 billion yen , marking the second straight month of a deficit.Imports grew in food, medical products and computers, while declining in autos and power-generating machines. They inched up 0.5% from the previous year, totaling nearly 9 trillion yen ., no longer setting it at below zero. The central bank has promised to still keep lending easy as it gauges various signs for how growth holds up.
Exports in February totaled 8.2 trillion yen , marking the third straight month of growth, according to the Finance Ministry’s preliminary report., which counts statistically as exports, with recent data showing that it’s at levels even higher than the years before the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan restricted entrance into the country during the pandemic.
Exports have remained a relative strong point even as Japan’s economy slows, hitting a record high of just over 100 trillion yen in 2023. But energy import costs have ballooned since 2022 for resource-scant Japan, although that has gradually subsided.Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.