TOKYO, Sept 8 (NNN-NHK) – Japan’s current account surplus reached 2.77 trillion yen (about 19 billion U.S. dollars) in July, a record amount for the month, as the trade balance swung to surplus, government data showed today.
The current account balance, one of the widest gauges of international trade, remained in the black for the sixth straight month, according to the Finance Ministry.
Japan logged a goods trade surplus of 68.2 billion yen, compared with the 1.18 trillion-yen deficit a year earlier, as imports shrank 13.3 percent to 8.49 trillion yen, amid declining crude oil and other fuel prices.
Primary income, which reflects returns on overseas investments, booked a surplus of 3.58 trillion yen, up 15.7 percent, lifted by securities investments earnings.
Japan’s travel surplus, which means the amount of money spent by foreign visitors to Japan exceeds that spent by Japanese abroad, came to 336.8 billion yen, the biggest for July since comparable data became available in 1996. (1 Japanese yen equals about 0.0068 U.S. dollars)– NNN-NHK
