Japan posted a current account surplus of ¥8.18 trillion in the January to June period, the largest since the second half of 2010, as lower crude oil prices pushed down imports and income increased on the back of a weaker yen, the government said Monday.

The surplus contrasts with a deficit of ¥497.7 billion a year earlier that largely resulted from rising imports of liquefied natural gas and crude oil after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 prompted nuclear power plants to be shut down.

Japan has relied heavily on energy imports since the disaster crippled Tepco's Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. With heightened public concerns about safety, all of the country's 43 commercial nuclear reactors remain offline.