Japan’s export growth continued in August, rising 5.6% yoy to JPY 8,442B, marking the ninth consecutive month of growth. However, this increase fell significantly short of market expectations of 10% yoy growth. The weaker export performance was largely driven by -9.9% yoy decline in auto exports.
In terms of regional performance, exports to the US fell -0.7% yoy, marking the first decline in nearly three years, with auto sales slumping -14.2% yoy. Exports to Europe also suffered, falling -8.1% yoy. In contrast, exports to China were a bright spot, rising by 5.2% yoy.
On the import side, Japan saw 2.3% yoy increase, reaching JPY 9,137B, but this was also far below the expected growth of 13.4% yoy. Despite this, the import figure was the second-largest on record for the month of August.
The country’s trade balance recorded a deficit of JPY -695B, remaining in the red for the second consecutive month.
In seasonally adjusted terms, both exports and imports declined on a month-over-month basis. Exports dropped -3.9% to JPY 8,759B, while imports fell -4.4% to JPY 9,354B. This left Japan with a seasonally adjusted trade deficit of JPY -596B.
