On April 20, Japan’s trade deficit narrowed for a second straight month in March as fuel prices retreated and import costs fell.
Data on Thursday showed Japan’s trade deficit narrowed to 754.5 billion yen from a revised 898.1 billion yen in February.
Imports rose 7.3 percent from a year earlier, the smallest increase in two years, as a stronger yen and lower prices for commodities such as oil weighed on import costs.
Exports rose 4.3 percent from a year earlier, with auto exports seeing the largest increase.
But while Japan’s deficit was smaller than the previous month, it has posted deficits for 20 consecutive months and is expected to weigh on the country’s recovery prospects.
Taro Saito, head of economic research at the National Economic Research Institute in Japan, said he thought the BOJ’s assessment of exports so far had been a bit upbeat.
The BOJ has been assessing that exports are picking up or improving, but it is not expected to maintain that view.