Japan: Merchandise exports fall in November
Yen-denominated merchandise exports fell 0.2% in annual terms in November (October: +1.6% year-on-year), undershooting market expectations of a rise. Meanwhile, merchandise imports plummeted 11.9% in annual terms in November (October: -12.5% yoy), marking the strongest result since May 2023.
As a result, the merchandise trade balance deteriorated to a JPY 0.8 trillion from the previous month’s JPY 0.7 trillion deficit in November (November 2022: JPY 2.1 trillion deficit).
Analysts at Nomura commented:
“After adjusting for inflation and seasonality, we estimate that real exports fell by 5.6% m-m in November, the first decline in three months. We see no need to be overly concerned about a deterioration in external demand based on this month’s data, as there have been frequent fluctuations of around 5% since the start of 2023. We will, however, be interested to see how strong the rebound is in the December statistics.”