The nation's current account surplus for October rose 220.2 percent from the same period in 1996 to 1.08 trillion yen, marking the seventh consecutive month of growth, provisional figures released Wednesday showed.
The sharp increase in the figure was attributed by the Finance Ministry to the yen's appreciation and a 96.8 percent surge in the trade surplus. The foreign exchange rate was calculated at 121.06 yen to the dollar, compared with 112.36 yen for October 1996.
The trade balance registered a surplus of 1.28 trillion yen as the 16.9 percent rise in exports to 4.51 trillion yen overshadowed the scant 0.7 percent increase in imports to 3.23 trillion yen. It was the lowest year-on-year growth for imports since the 1.7 percent increase recorded in June 1994.