Japanese exports grew more than expected last month, providing much-needed support for the economy, as shipments of vehicles and chip-related gear advanced.
Exports last month rose 11.9 percent from a year earlier, beating economists’ forecast of a 9.5 percent gain, the Japanese Ministry of Finance reported yesterday.
Imports slid for a 10th month, falling 9.6 percent, spurred by slides in coal and liquefied natural gas. That compared with consensus forecasts of an 8.7 percent decline.
Photo: AP
The timing of the Lunar New Year holidays skewed year-on-year comparisons by boosting exports to China. The trade balance flipped to a deficit of ￥1.76 trillion (US$11.74 billion) from a revised surplus of ￥68.9 billion.
The gain in exports, coming a month after a revised 9.7 percent rise in December last year, is a positive sign for Japan after the economy unexpectedly fell into recession in the final quarter of last year due to stagnant domestic spending.
The evidence that external demand is holding up is likely to underpin market views that the Bank of Japan can continue to move toward normalizing monetary policy, as many economists expect to happen by April. The central bank’s policy board has recently sought to assure markets that the first rate hike since 2007 would not result in radical changes, as policy settings would remain accommodative.
Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda last week reiterated his view that the bank would keep parsing data carefully to judge whether a gradual economic recovery would continue.
Yesterday’s figures were solid across the board. Exports to the US rose 15.6 percent, driven by vehicles and medical devices in the 28th straight month of increases.
Outbound shipments to the EU gained 13.8 percent, and exports to China rose 29.2 percent, as the number of working days this year increased compared with a year earlier due to the timing of the lunar new year.
Shipments of vehicles and auto parts, along with equipment for chipmaking, were the main engines of growth last month.
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