Japan achieves record export in December on rebound in China shipments

Japan trade data: Japan's exports reached their highest monthly record in December, official data released on Wednesday showed. The record exports were propelled by a notable increase in shipments to China for the first time in over a year and record-breaking sales to the United States (US). 

According to the Ministry of Finance data, the value of exports from the world's third-largest economy surged by 9.8 per cent year-on-year to 9.65 trillion yen ($65.13 billion) last month.

This exceeded economists' expectations of a 9.1 per cent gain in a Reuters poll and marked a major rebound from the 0.2 per cent contraction experienced in November.

Exports to China, one of Japan's major markets, increased 9.6 per cent to 1.77 trillion yen ($11.95 billion) in December, the second-highest level on record. 

Semiconductor manufacturing equipment and automobiles played a key role in driving this expansion, although shipments of China-bound semiconductor and other electronic components experienced a 22 per cent decline.

Notably, exports to the US, a key ally for Japan, recorded a notable increase of 20.4 per cent, marking 27 consecutive months of growth. The surge was driven by the export of automobiles, construction and mining equipment, as well as auto parts.

On the import side, there was a 6.8 per cent decrease in the year to December, compared to the median estimate of a 5.3 per cent decline. 

As a result, Japan's trade balance reflected a surplus of 62.1 billion yen, surpassing the median estimate for a 122.1 billion yen deficit.

(With Reuters Inputs)