The current account surplus grew 7.8 percent to 9.44 trillion yen in the first half of 2006 compared with a year earlier as the income account surplus surged, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

It is the second consecutive half-year increase in the current account surplus.

The balance of trade in goods and services logged a 3.15 trillion yen surplus in the January-June period, down 20.2 percent from a year ago, as the surplus in merchandise trade was pared by costlier oil imports, the ministry said in the preliminary report.