Japan posted a record current account deficit of ¥1.98 trillion ($14.4 billion based on current rates) in January, hurt by swelling import costs that caused the resource-poor nation to register its largest-ever trade deficit, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.
Growth in exports was far slower than that of imports, partly because Japanese firms curbed China-bound shipments due to the Lunar New Year holidays. This translated into a whopping ¥3.18 trillion trade deficit, double the figure of a year prior.
The current account, one of the widest gauges of international trade, fell into the red for the first time since October, despite a record primary income surplus on higher foreign investment returns.