Japan's March trade gap swells to biggest-ever 1.45 trillion yen

JAPAN's trade deficit with the rest of the world hit its worst-ever level in March, while the deficit for the fiscal year as a whole to March 31 grew a massive 69 per cent from the previous year, official data released yesterday showed.

The deficit for fiscal 2012/13 was 13.75 trillion yen (S$168 billion), as an almost 11 per cent increase in exports during the period to 70.9 trillion yen failed to keep up with a jump of more than 17 per cent in total import costs to 84.6 trillion yen, said the Finance Ministry.

In March alone, the trade deficit hit 1.45 trillion yen, marking a 21st consecutive monthly shortfall and the worst recorded figure for March, according to data prepared on a customs-cleared basis.