Japan's current account surplus in March posted its first gain in three months on the back of strong overseas investment income, but exports, a key driver for economic growth, continued to lag rising imports, official figures showed yesterday.
The current account surplus, which measures the flow of goods, services and investment income and other financial transfers, rose 0.5 percent from a year earlier to ¥1.85 trillion (US$17.5 billion), the finance ministry said.
For the year to March, the current account surplus increased 5.8 percent to a record ¥18.29 trillion with the trade surplus up 2.0 percent at ¥13.56 trillion.
Exports alone rose 10.2 percent to a record ¥58.83 trillion, while imports grew even faster at 13 percent to ¥45.27 trillion, also a record, during the year.
In March alone, the current account surplus marked the first year-on-year rise in three months, mainly due to a gain in income from Japanese investments in foreign bonds and stocks, the ministry said.
"Dividends and interest payments from Japanese companies' investments in foreign bonds and stocks rose sharply in the month, lifting the overall current account surplus," a ministry official said.
On a net basis, Japanese investment income jumped 23 percent to ¥838 billion, while the return on direct investment income, which includes profits of Japanese subsidiaries overseas, grew 4.4 percent to ¥166.2 billion in March.
Analysts said the overall gain in the current account surplus may not be sustainable given a prolonged inventory adjustment in the information-technology sector, rising commodity prices and growing uncertainty over Chinese and US economic growth.
"Due to the prolonged inventory adjustment in the IT sector and worries over a slowdown in economic growth in China and the US, Japan's exports are most likely to stagnate at least" for a while through the summer, said Daiwa Institute of Research senior economist Junichi Makino.
The March trade surplus alone shrank 8.5 percent to ¥1.23 trillion.
Exports grew 6.5 percent to ¥5.51 trillion for a 16th consecutive monthly gain, while imports jumped 11.8 percent to ¥4.28 trillion, up 13 months in a row, as soaring oil prices continued to boost the value of imports.
"The sharp rise in imports is solely due to high oil prices. It does not reflect the strength of domestic demand," said Tomomichi Akuta, a senior economist at UFJ Institute.
The average oil price stood at US$42.51 a barrel in March, up 34.7 percent from a year earlier, the finance ministry said.
Growth in exports, which account for some 10 percent of Japan's GDP, is expected to remain slow amid sluggish demand for digital products in Asia, analysts said.
"Since late last year, demand for high-tech products such as personal computers, mobile phones and semiconductors has remained weak, particularly in Asia," Akuta said.
"In the face of slow demand in Asia and a slump in the European market, Japanese exports will likely remain flat in the months to come," he said.
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
CHINA POLICY: At the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China, the two sides issued strong support for Taiwan and condemned China’s actions in the South China Sea The US and EU issued a joint statement on Wednesday supporting Taiwan’s international participation, notably omitting the “one China” policy in a departure from previous similar statements, following high-level talks on China and the Indo-Pacific region. The statement also urged China to show restraint in the Taiwan Strait. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary-General Stefano Sannino cochaired the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth US-EU Indo-Pacific Consultations from Monday to Tuesday. Since the Indo-Pacific consultations were launched in 2021, references to the “one China” policy have appeared in every statement apart from the
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from