Japan export growth cools amid worries about China slowdown

JAPANESE exports rose in June for a seventh straight month, but the pace of growth slowed sharply from the previous month, data showed on Thursday (Jul 18), underscoring concerns that a slowdown in China may hamper Japan’s trade-reliant economy.

Slowing exports could dash policymakers’ hopes that solid external demand may more than offset weak domestic consumption. Japan’s economy has been expected to emerge from a sharper-than expected contraction in the first quarter.

Data from the Ministry of Finance showed Japanese exports rose 5.4 per cent year-on-year in June, smaller than a 6.4 per cent increase expected by economists in a Reuters poll and cooling from 13.5 per cent growth in May.

Imports grew 3.2 per cent in June from a year earlier, versus a 9.3 per cent increase expected by economists, swinging the trade balance into a surplus of 224 billion yen (S$1.9 billion). Estimates were for a deficit of 240 billion yen.

Imports had risen 9.5 per cent in May.

Export volumes fell 6.2 per cent in June, the data showed.

SEE ALSO

IMF cuts Japan’s growth forecast, upbeat on consumption prospects

Japan finds a ‘stealth’ cure for zombie businesses: Let them fail

Japan households’ inflation expectations heighten, quarterly survey shows

Japan’s key capex gauge falls again, clouds outlook for durable growth

More

DECODING ASIA

Navigate Asia in
a new global order

Get the insights delivered to your inbox.

By destination, exports to China by value rose 7.2 per cent year-on-year in June, led by demand for chip-making equipment, the trade data showed, but growth slowed from the 17.8 per cent increase in May.

Shipments to the US, Japan’s ally and a key market, grew 11 per cent year-on-year in June, while those to European Union fell 13.4 per cent. REUTERS