Trade With Japan Collapses: Exports Decline 7th Month, Imports Decline 16th Month

Abenomics is back in the spotlight tonight.

Global trade with Japan has collapsed. Exports are down and imports are down even more.

The result is an unexpected rise in Japan’s trade surplus, yet another failure of abenomics.

Japanese Output Shrinks at Fastest Pace Since 2012

The Markit Japanese PMI shows Output falls at fastest rate in over two years, underpinned by a sharp
drop in new orders.

• Flash Japan Manufacturing PMI™ at 47.6 (48.2 in April). Flash headline PMI signals sharpest decline in operating conditions since December 2012.
• Flash Japan Manufacturing Output Index at 46.9 (47.8 in April). Production decreases at most marked rate in over two years.

Unexpected Surplus

Bloomberg reports Japan April Trade Surplus 823.5 Billion Yen, Beats Estimates.

Japan’s exports fell for a seventh consecutive month in April as the yen strengthened, underscoring the growing challenges to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s efforts to revive economic growth.

Overseas shipments declined 10.1 percent in April from a year earlier, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday. The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a 9.9 percent drop. Imports fell 23.3 percent, leaving a trade surplus of 823.5 billion yen ($7.5 billion), the highest since March 2010.

Trade With Japan Collapses

Clearly those stats are not worthy of comment. Thus, there was no comment.

Comments or not, those stats are precisely what is behind the Japan-USA feud on the unwelcome, disorderly strength of the Yen from the perspective of Japan.

Orderly and Not Disorderly in Pictures

For further discussion of the meaning of disorderly, please see US and Japan Feud Over Yen, Devaluations, and Meaning of “Orderly”.

Mike “Mish” Shedlock