Exports from Japan fall almost 50 percent

September 24th, 2009 TOKYO - Japan posted a trade surplus for the seventh straight month in August, compared to a deficit in the same month the previous year, the finance ministry said Thursday. The surplus was 185.7 billion yen ($2.04 billion) against a deficit of 314.2 billion yen the year before, suggesting a positive trend for Japan's export-led economy.

September 24th, 2009 Japan mired in slump as exports, imports tumbleTOKYO — Japan's exports tumbled 36 percent in August — with car shipments falling by half — and imports also contracted sharply, the government said Thursday, showing the world's No. 2 economy remains mired in a deep slump.

September 8th, 2009 Japan's current account surplus down 19.4 percentTOKYO — Japan's current account surplus in July fell 19.4 percent from a year earlier as exports tumbled amid a slow recovery in the global economy, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The current account surplus, Japan's broadest measure of trade with the rest of the world, was 1.27 trillion yen ($13.6 billion), the first year-on-year fall in two months, the ministry said.

August 19th, 2009 TOKYO - China was Japan's biggest trading partner in the first six months this year, according to a report Wednesday. For the first time, Japan's exports to China surpassed those to the US.

July 10th, 2009 Japan wholesale prices fall 6.6 percent in JuneTOKYO — Japan's central bank said Friday that wholesale prices fell 6.6 percent in June from a year earlier, the biggest fall on record and the latest sign that deflation is returning to the country. The Bank of Japan's corporate good price index, which tracks the cost of a wide range of products sold domestically, declined for the sixth straight month.

June 24th, 2009 Japan exports fall 40.9 percent in MayTOKYO — The slump in Japan's exports showed little sign of relenting in May, with auto exports to the U.S. down more than half, adding to doubts about a quick recovery from the global recession.

April 30th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India's exports to the US have fallen by 11.5 percent in the five-month period since last October, said the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), adding that this was a 'matter of deep concern'. 'The sharp decline in our exports to the US that accounts for 13 percent of our global exports is a matter of deep concern,' FICCI president Harshpati Singhania said in a statement Thursday.

April 22nd, 2009 Japan's export slump eases slightly in MarchTOKYO — The severe slump in Japan's exports eased slightly in March, offering a small sign that overseas demand may be headed toward recovery, even as the nation recorded its first annual trade deficit in 28 years. Exports in March plunged by almost 46 percent from a year earlier, the finance ministry said Wednesday, but the decline wasn't as bad as February when exports slumped by about half.

April 22nd, 2009 TOKYO - Japan's trade balance for fiscal 2008 marked the first deficit in 28 years due to rise in commodity prices and slower exports to the US and other major economies, the finance ministry said Wednesday. The nation's trade deficit logged 725.32 billion yen ($7.38 billion) in fiscal 2008 that ended in March, the ministry said.

April 22nd, 2009 Japan posts first annual trade deficit in 28 yearsTOKYO — Japan reported Wednesday its first annual trade deficit in 28 years. The deficit for the fiscal year that ended in March was 725.3 billion yen ($7.35 billion), the Finance Ministry said.

April 22nd, 2009 Japan's exports dive 46 percent in MarchTOKYO — Japan's exports continued to slump in March, hit by declining shipments of autos and electronics, underlining a grim outlook for the world's second-largest economy as it struggles to climb out of recession. Japan also recorded its first annual trade deficit in 28 years for the 12 months through March, the Ministry of Finance said Wednesday, as the global economic crisis sank demand for the nation's mainstay exports.

February 25th, 2009 TOKYO - Japan logged the largest trade deficit on record in January as the global recession slowed exports, the finance ministry said Wednesday. The nation's trade deficit totalled 952.6 billion yen ($9.97 billion) in January.

February 24th, 2009 PANAJI - Goa's Rs.60-billion (Rs.6,000-crore) low-grade iron ore exports are expected to fall 50 percent this fiscal, an industry leader said here Monday. While exports this year have shown a marginal drop in terms of volumes, the actual revenue earned has shrunk considerably, Shivanand Salgaocar, president of the Mineral Ore Foundation (MOF), told reporters.

February 6th, 2009 KOCHI - Seafood exports are likely to fall about 20 percent both in quantity and value terms this fiscal due to the global economic slowdown, an industry body has said. 'The global meltdown has taken a toll on the industry, and seafood prices are going down in international markets,' Anwar Hashim, president of the Seafood Exporters Association of India, told IANS here.

January 12th, 2009 BEIJING - China's exports and imports declined for the second consecutive month in December, reflecting deteriorating demand in external and domestic markets amid the global financial crisis. The country's exports fell 2.8 percent in December from a year earlier to $111.16 billion, while imports in the month totalled $72.18 billion, down 21.3 percent year on year, the General Administration of Customs said Tuesday.