Japan logs first trade deficit since January

A bigger jump in the imports in May pushed the Japanese trade balance into deficit for the first time since January. 

According to Japan’s Ministry of Finance, exports rose 14.9% year-on-year in May; up from 7.5% in April. However, the actual print missed the estimated growth of 16.1%. On the other hand, imports rose 17.8%, beating the estimated rise of 14.8%. 

Imports from Asia jumped 14.4%, while those from North America grew 11.3%. Thus, Japan registered a trade deficit of JPY 203.4 billion in May, compared to a revised surplus of JPY 481.1 billion in April.