Good exports in Japan saw a 26.2-percent expansion in August from the previous year, keeping to recover rapidly from the initial influence of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, government statistics showed Thursday. A preliminary report by the finance ministry showed that exports gained for the sixth consecutive month to 6.61 trillion yen (60 billion U.S. dollars), thanks to active exports of steel to the European market and semiconductor-producing equipment to some Asian nations. Compared with the same period last year, the growth in exports topped 20 percent for the fifth successive month rebounding from a plunge of 14.8 percent in August last year when Japan remained affected by the decline in global demand for automobiles and other commodities. Exports increased 7.6 percent from August two years ago before the virus epidemic broke out, which reflected strong demand, the ministry said.
As the pandemic led to a global chip shortage and the impact on parts suppliers in Southeast Asia, automobile exports went up 4.0 percent in the reporting month, slowing down largely from the jump of 43.5 percent the month earlier, probably indicating a decline in output by some domestic automakers, a ministry official said. Imports soared 44.7 percent to 7.24 trillion yen (66.2 million dollars) for the seventh month in a row, triggered by growths in medicine and liquefied natural gas imports as well as higher prices of crude oil purchases from nations such as Saudi Arabia. Totally, the country marked a 635.36 billion yen (5.8 million dollars) goods trade deficit, ending in the red for the first time in three months. All numbers were compiled on a customs-cleared basis.