Japan Records Trade Deficit for 3 Consecutive Months... South Korea Posts Surplus

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Japan recorded a trade deficit for the third consecutive month. This is attributed to the global economic downturn caused by the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

According to preliminary trade statistics released by Japan's Ministry of Finance on the 20th, exports in June fell 26.2% year-on-year to 4.862 trillion yen (approximately 54.6 trillion KRW), while imports decreased by 14.4% to 5.1309 trillion yen (approximately 57.6241 trillion KRW).

Japan's trade balance in June showed a deficit of 268.8 billion yen, marking a deficit for three consecutive months since April.

Japan's exports have declined for 19 consecutive months, and imports have decreased for 14 consecutive months.

By product category in exports, automobiles dropped sharply by 49.9%, and automobile parts by 52.3%.

By export region, exports to the United States decreased by 46.6%, continuing a decline for 11 consecutive months.

Exports to China declined for the sixth consecutive month, but the decrease was limited to 0.2%.

Including June's performance, exports for the first half of the year (January to June) fell 15.4% year-on-year to 32.3642 trillion yen, and imports decreased by 11.6% to 34.6038 trillion yen. The trade balance for the first half recorded a deficit of 2.2395 trillion yen.

The Ministry of Finance explained that automobiles and automobile parts significantly impacted the export decline in the first half of this year. It added that energy sectors, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), had a large influence on imports.

In June, Japan's exports to South Korea decreased by 15.1% to 350.6 billion yen, and imports fell by 15.8% to 211 billion yen.

Trade with South Korea achieved a surplus of 139.5 billion yen.

For the first half of the year, exports to South Korea decreased by 10.9% to 2.3256 trillion yen, and imports declined by 9.9% to 1.4586 trillion yen (approximately 9.7 trillion KRW), resulting in a trade surplus.

However, the surplus margin shrank by 12.3% compared to the same period last year.

The major export items to South Korea that saw significant declines in the first half were organic compounds (-30.5%), automobiles (-63.5%), and motorcycles (-43.4%).

During this period, exports of food products including beer to South Korea decreased by 10.9%.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.