According to Bloomberg, EqualOcean has been informed that Japan's exports fell for the first time in more than two years due to a slump in demand in several key overseas markets, signaling headwinds for the economic recovery.
Japan's Ministry of Finance recently reported that Japan's exports fell 0.3 percent year-on-year in July, the first decline since February 2021. Economists had previously forecast a decline of 0.2%. In addition, Japan's imports fell for the fourth consecutive month, down 13.5% from the previous year, the largest decline since September 2020, economists had previously expected a decrease of 15.2%.
Export data continued to highlight imbalances in economic conditions overseas, the report said. Shipments to the U.S. were up 13.5% year-on-year, while shipments to Europe were up 12.4%.
Meanwhile, Japan's exports to major trading partner China slumped 13.4 percent, the biggest drop since January, marking the eighth consecutive month of declining exports to China, a trend likely to continue as economic activity cools.
Shipments of automobiles, chips, and chipsets fell by double digits. Specifically, Japan's semiconductors and other electronic components exports to China slumped 16.8% year-on-year in July, while automobile exports fell 23.5%, according to Japan's Ministry of Finance data. Also in July Japan's imports of semiconductors and other electronic components from China fell 28.2% year-on-year.