Wednesday May 14, 2008 MYT 10:51:49 AM
Japan's current account surplus falls in March on strong imports
TOKYO (AP)- Japan's current account surplus in March fell 12.3 percent from a year earlier as imports grew faster than exports on the back of soaring global oil prices, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.
The surplus in the current account, the broadest measure of Japan's trade with the rest of the world, stood at 2.9 trillion yen (US$27.8 billion; euro18 billion) for the month, it said. It was the first decline in three months.
Exports in March rose 2.8 percent to 7.4 trillion yen (US$71 billion; euro46 billion), while imports expanded a stronger 13.2 percent to 6.1 trillion yen (US$59 billion; euro38 billion), the ministry said. Hideki Matsumura, a senior economist at think tank Japan Research Institute, said Japan's current account surplus would likely shrink due to skyrocketing oil prices.
"Import growth will continue to outpace export growth due to soaring costs of oil imports,'' Matsumura said.
The economist added Japan's export growth would remain modest due to slowing demand in the United States, the world's largest economy.
In March, the value of Japan's crude oil imports jumped 51.6 percent, and that of petroleum products rose 47.9 percent, reflecting soaring global oil prices, the Finance Ministry said.
The trade surplus in March stood at 1.3 trillion yen (US$12.1 billion; euro7.8 billion), down 29 percent from a year earlier.
For the fiscal year through March 2008, Japan's current account surplus rose 16.1 percent from a year earlier to a record 24.6 trillion yen (US$237 billion; euro153 billion).
The current account measures trade in goods, services, tourism and investment. It is calculated by determining the difference between Japan's income from foreign sources against payments on foreign obligations and excludes net capital investment. - AP
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