Japan’s trade deficit for first half declines as exports recover

AP Business Writer

TOKYO (AP) — Japan has reported it logged a trade surplus in June, the first in three months, highlighting a recovery in exports. Government data showed Thursday that for the first six months of this year, Japan’s trade deficit declined by more than half from the same period last year, to 3.23 trillion yen, or about $21 billion. The yen’s weakness against the U.S. dollar has helped boost Japan’s exports in recent months. The trade surplus in June grew five-fold from a year earlier to 224 billion yen, or $1.4 billion, on rising exports of vehicles and computer chips.