Japan Sept exports fall 6.9% y-o-y: MOF

[TOKYO] Japan's exports fell 6.9 per cent in September from a year earlier, down for a 12th straight month, Ministry of Finance data showed on Monday, in a sign of sluggish external demand.

The result compares with the median forecast for a 10.4 per cent fall in a Reuters poll of economists, and follows a 9.6 per cent decline in August.

Imports fell 16.3 per cent, versus the median estimate of a 16.6 per cent fall.

The trade balance swung to a surplus of 498.3 billion yen (S$6.69 billion), versus the median estimate of a 341.8 billion yen surplus.

REUTERS