Exports from Japan in May declined 1.7% year-on-year, marking the sharpest decline since September 2024.
The fall was softer than the 3.8% decline forecasted by economists polled by Reuters, but was a reversal compared to the 2% gain recorded in April.
The data comes a day after the Bank of Japan highlighted in its monetary policy statement that the country’s growth was likely to “moderate,” due to factors like trade, which would lead to a slowdown in overseas economies and a decline in domestic corporate profits.
“It is extremely uncertain how trade and other policies in each jurisdiction will evolve and how overseas economic activity and prices will react to them,” the BOJ added.
Falling exports had already made a dent in Japan’s GDP, with the country’s economy shrinking 0.2% in the quarter ending March, compared to the preceding period, marking the first time in a year that the economy contracted on a quarter-on-quarter basis.
