ID :
202171
Thu, 08/18/2011 - 15:30
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https://oananews.org//node/202171
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Japan's exports keep falling in July, but with signs of recovery
TOKYO, Aug. 18 Kyodo -
Japanese exports continued to fall in July in the wake of the March earthquake and tsunami, but there were some signs of recovery, with the balance of trade marking a surplus for the second straight month amid an upturn in industrial output, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.
The value of exports, measured on a customs-cleared basis, dropped 3.3 percent in the reporting month from a year earlier to 5,781.9 billion yen for the fifth straight month of decline, while imports grew 9.9 percent to 5,709.4 billion yen, the 19th consecutive month of expansion, the ministry said in a preliminary report. The trade balance came to a surplus of 72.5 billion yen.
The recent sharp rise of the yen against the U.S. dollar and other major currencies has eroded the competitiveness of Japanese exporters, the government acknowledged, while warning that the gloomier outlook for the global economy, which followed the slowdown in the United States and Europe, warrants extra caution.
Japan's exports have been slowing since the March disaster, which seriously weighed on industrial output by disrupting nationwide supply chains for key components.
Shipments by such major exporters as carmakers and electronic parts manufacturers still marked a fall, down 3.8 percent and 15.0 percent, respectively. The July result was also affected by a one-off effect resulting from the 31.0 percent decline among shipbuilders, whose output tends to be volatile.
It has become clearer, though, that many companies have been dealing with the supply-side constraints and accelerating their production.
On a month-on-month basis, overall exports gained a seasonally adjusted 0.8 percent from June for the third straight month of expansion, the ministry said.
Japanese exports continued to fall in July in the wake of the March earthquake and tsunami, but there were some signs of recovery, with the balance of trade marking a surplus for the second straight month amid an upturn in industrial output, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.
The value of exports, measured on a customs-cleared basis, dropped 3.3 percent in the reporting month from a year earlier to 5,781.9 billion yen for the fifth straight month of decline, while imports grew 9.9 percent to 5,709.4 billion yen, the 19th consecutive month of expansion, the ministry said in a preliminary report. The trade balance came to a surplus of 72.5 billion yen.
The recent sharp rise of the yen against the U.S. dollar and other major currencies has eroded the competitiveness of Japanese exporters, the government acknowledged, while warning that the gloomier outlook for the global economy, which followed the slowdown in the United States and Europe, warrants extra caution.
Japan's exports have been slowing since the March disaster, which seriously weighed on industrial output by disrupting nationwide supply chains for key components.
Shipments by such major exporters as carmakers and electronic parts manufacturers still marked a fall, down 3.8 percent and 15.0 percent, respectively. The July result was also affected by a one-off effect resulting from the 31.0 percent decline among shipbuilders, whose output tends to be volatile.
It has become clearer, though, that many companies have been dealing with the supply-side constraints and accelerating their production.
On a month-on-month basis, overall exports gained a seasonally adjusted 0.8 percent from June for the third straight month of expansion, the ministry said.
