Japan's trade deficit in fiscal 2015 through March plunged 88.2 percent from a year earlier to ¥1.08 trillion ($9.9 billion), helped largely by a fall in the cost of crude oil imports, the government said Wednesday.
The value of exports fell 0.7 percent for the first decline in three years to ¥74.12 trillion, while that of imports dropped 10.3 percent to ¥75.20 trillion, the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report.
The value of crude oil imports plunged 37.9 percent as average oil prices dropped 45.2 percent from the previous year to $48.90 per barrel. Import values of liquefied natural gas decreased 41.4 percent.
Crude oil prices have a major impact on the nation's trade balance as the country relies heavily on energy imports, especially after the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, with most of the country's commercial nuclear reactors remaining offline amid heightened public concern about their safety.
Shipments to the United States grew 6.2 percent to ¥15.09 trillion on the back of solid vehicle exports, while imports expanded 2.3 percent to ¥7.87 trillion.
Exports to China, another major destination for Japanese products, dropped 3.1 percent to ¥13.00 trillion, while imports fell 0.6 percent to ¥19.06 trillion.
Exports to the European Union climbed 5.2 percent to ¥8.10 trillion and imports from the 28-nation bloc gained 8.0 percent to ¥8.73 trillion.
The figures were measured on a customs-cleared basis.
In March alone, the trade balance stood at a surplus of ¥755.0 billion, posting a surplus for two months in a row, with exports falling 6.8 percent on-year to ¥6.46 trillion and imports sliding 14.9 percent to ¥5.70 trillion.