(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) Kuwait's trade surplus with Japan widened 11.8 percent in May to JPY 76.1 billion (USD 616 million) from a year earlier, expanding for the first time in seven months thanks to strong exports, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.
Kuwait recorded black ink with Japan for the 88th consecutive month, the ministry said in a preliminary report. Kuwaiti overall exports to Japan increased 6.4 percent to JPY 85.6 billion (USD 693 million) for the first rise in seven months, and imports from Japan plunged 22.9 percent year-on-year to JPY 9.5 billion (USD 769 million), down for the first time in three months. Middle East's trade surplus with Japan narrowed 42.1 percent to JPY 514.5 billion (USD 4.2 billion) last month, with Japan-bound exports from the region tumbling 35.1 percent from a year earlier. Crude oil, refined products, liquefied natural gas and other natural resources, which accounted for 95.8 percent of the region's total exports to Japan, plunged 35.9 percent.
The region's overall imports from Japan fell 6.3 percent, chiefly due to weak shipments of automobile, steel and electric equipment.
The world's third-biggest economy posted a global trade deficit of JPY 216.0 billion (USD 1.8 billion) in May, significantly narrowed 76.5 percent on the year, as lower energy prices continued to reduce import bills.
Overall exports grew 2.4 percent, up for the ninth straight month led by increased shipments of semiconductors and marine vessels. Imports dropped 8.7 percent for the fifth straight month, reflecting the plunge in crude oil and liquefied natural gas prices. Exports to China, Japan's biggest trading partner, edged up 1.1 percent, while imports from the country expanded 1.5 percent. Japan's currency weakened against the US dollar by 17.0 percent from the year before. The yen's depreciation supports exports by making Japanese products more competitive overseas and increase the value of repatriated overseas earning, but it also inflates import prices. The trade data are measured on a customs-cleared basis before adjustment for seasonal factors.
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