Japan’s exports in September dropped by -1.7% yoy to JPY 9.038T, marking the first annual decline in 10 months. This slump was driven by weaker demand from key trading partners. Exports to China, Japan’s largest market, fell by -7.3% yoy, while those to the US dropped by -2.4% yoy.
On the other hand, imports rose modestly by 2.1% yoy to JPY 9.333T, leading to a trade deficit of JPY -294B, the third consecutive monthly shortfall.
In seasonally adjusted terms, there was a small improvement. Exports grew by 2.0% mom to JPY 8.956T, while imports fell by -1.2% mom to JPY 9.144T. This led to a seasonally adjusted trade deficit of JPY -187B.
