Japan exports soar to record in December; China shipments make long-awaited rebound

Japan's exports surged to record highs in December, with shipments to the U.S. soaring to their strongest-ever level while those to China were also robust, logging their first rise in more than a year.

The better-than-expected data comes at a time of heightened concern about a faltering economic recovery in China and its potential to drag on the global economy.
Exports from the world's third-largest economy climbed 9.8 per cent to 9.65 trillion yen ($65.1 billion) last month from the same period a year earlier, finance ministry data showed on Wednesday.

That beat a consensus estimate of 9.1 per cent from economists in a Reuters poll and followed a 0.2 per cent contraction in November.

Economists said, however, that it was unclear whether Japan's lacklustre economy - which has seen factory activity shrink for eight straight months - could bank on a sustainable boost from a recovery in exports.

"Exports were strong but it might only be a bounceback after the fall in November. The pace of economic growth in the U.S. and Europe seems to be slowing a bit and China has only just bottomed out so any recovery in exports is likely to be a weak one," said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute.

Exports to China - Japan's biggest trading partner - climbed 9.6 per cent to 1.77 trillion yen ($12 billion) in December, the second-largest amount on record.

Shipments of semiconductor manufacturing equipment and cars led the expansion but exports of chip and other electronic components tumbled 22 per cent.

Exports to the United States surged 20.4 per cent, marking 27 consecutive months of growth. Shipments of cars and auto parts as well as construction and mining equipment propelled the increase.

Japan's imports fell 6.8 per cent in December, more than the median estimate for a 5.3 per cent decrease. That helped the trade balance come to a surplus of 62.1 billion yen, trumping the median estimate for a 122.1 billion yen deficit.

For the whole of 2023, Japan logged a trade deficit of 9.29 trillion yen, marking three consecutive years of deficit but shrinking by 54.3 per cent compared to the previous year.