Tokyo, May 21 (Jiji Press)--Japan's crude oil imports from the Middle East plunged 67.2 pct in April from a year earlier amid escalating tensions involving Iran, the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report Thursday. The decline was the steepest since 1980, when comparable data became available. In value terms, crude oil imports from the Middle East dropped 55.5 pct, marking the largest decline since July 2020, according to customs-cleared trade data from the ministry. In April, Japan logged a trade surplus of 301.9 billion yen, marking the third consecutive month of surplus. Growth in Japan's semiconductor exports helped offset a sharp decline in crude oil imports. Japan's overall crude oil imports, including those from the Middle East, decreased by 63.7 pct in volume terms, the biggest drop since 1980. In value terms, the country's crude oil imports fell 49.9 pct, marking the sharpest decline since April 1991, soon after the end of the Gulf War. While crude oil imports from the Middle East plunged, those from the United States increased by 38.8 pct in volume. The ministry believes that imports through alternative routes are increasing. Japan's overall exports climbed 14.8 pct to 10,507.3 billion yen, pushed up by strong demand for electronic parts such as chips, including integrated circuits bound for China. Overall imports grew 9.7 pct to 10,205.4 billion yen, due to growth in imports of integrated circuits from other parts of Asia and kerosene from South Korea. Regarding naphtha and other light petroleum products, Japan's imports from the Middle East declined by 72.8 pct in value terms, while those from the United States logged a 107-fold increase. By country, Japan logged a surplus of 697.5 billion yen in overall trade with the United States and a deficit of 772 billion yen in trade with China. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]