Led by strong exports to the rest of Asia, Japan's trade surplus surged 95.6 percent in October from a year earlier to 902 billion yen, according to a preliminary report released Monday by the Finance Ministry.
October's figure marked the eighth consecutive month of year-on-year growth in the customs-cleared merchandise trade surplus, with exports exceeding imports.
Exports rose 14.3 percent from the previous year to 4.65 trillion yen, the seventh straight month of increase, while imports grew 3.9 percent to 3.75 trillion yen, the second consecutive month of increase.