Japan exports rise 12.5% y-o-y: MOF

JAPAN’S exports rose 12.5 per cent in April from a year earlier, posting a 14th straight month of increase, Ministry of Finance data showed on Thursday. The rise compared with a 13.8 per cent increase expected by economists in a Reuters poll. It followed a 14.7 per cent rise in March. Imports rose 28.2 per cent, versus the median estimate for a 35.0 per cent increase, as a weaker yen helped boost already surging global commodity prices, inflating import bills. The trade balance came to a deficit of 839.2 billion yen (S$9.12 billion), against the median estimate for a 1.150 trillion yen shortfall. AFP