Japan's current account surplus shrank 7.6 percent in January from a year earlier to 719.1 billion yen, for the first fall in five months as higher oil prices cut into the nation's trade balance, the Finance Ministry said Monday.

The balance of trade in goods and services posted a deficit of 385.3 billion yen, falling into the red for the first time since January last year, when it logged a 17.8 billion yen deficit, the ministry said in a preliminary report.

Merchandise trade posted a 209.4 billion yen deficit in the reporting month, a reversal from a 332.3 billion yen surplus a year earlier, and marking the first deficit since January 1983.

Exports grew 13.1 percent to 4.76 trillion yen. Ship exports climbed 38.4 percent, while auto exports increased 28.4 percent.

Imports expanded at a faster pace, rising 28.1 percent to 4.97 trillion yen, the second-highest level on record, spurred by spiking oil prices and Japan's firm domestic demand.

Imports of crude oil jumped 67.4 percent and chip imports were up 35.8 percent.

Crude oil prices surged 46.5 percent in January from a year earlier to $56.27 per barrel on a customs-cleared basis, rising for the 22nd straight month.