Japan reported a current account surplus of ¥1.85 trillion ($16.86 billion) in April — marking the 46th straight month of a positive figure for the economic indicator — as a result of the country's robust exports, government data showed Friday.
But the surplus shrank by 6.8 percent from a year ago due to a larger deficit in the service sector, including passenger and cargo transportation, according to a preliminary report released by the Finance Ministry.
The country had a trade surplus of ¥573.8 billion, up 3.8 percent, on strong exports of automobiles, ships and semiconductor-related equipment.