Tokyo

JAPAN'S current account surplus on the nation's balance of payments hit its highest level in nearly a decade in the financial year to March 31, reaching just over 20 trillion yen (S$248 billion) and setting the stage for further friction with the administration of US president Donald Trump.

The surplus, announced on Thursday, was the third-largest since financial year 1985. It owed more to falling import costs and other factors than to exports but analysts said it could still inflame tensions with Washington which is set on cutting trade surpluses with Japan and others.